
THE WOUNDED PIONEER. 



HEROES 



AND 



HUNTERS OF THE WEST: 



COMPRISING 



SKETCHES AND ADVENTURES 



OF 



BOONE, KENTON, BRADY, LOGAN, WHETZEL, 
FLEEHART, HUGHES, JOHNSTON, &c. 



PHILADELPHIA ! 
H, C. PECK & THEO. BLISS. 
1859. 



E>5 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1853, 

BY H. C. PECK & THEO. BLISS, 

in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the Eastern District 
of Pennsylvania. 



Gift 

Kent Uw Book C©.» 
Jan. 22. 1937. 



CONTENTS. 



Daniel Boone, ........ 11 

Simon Kenton, ........ 19 

George Rogers Clarke, ....... 24 

Benjamin Logan, 32 

Samuel Brady, •••••••• 88 

Lewis Whetzel, ....... 45 

Caffree, M'Clure, and Davis, • • • • • 58 

Charles Johnston, ••••••• 66 

Joseph Logston, . . . . • • • • 74 

Jesse Hughes, ••••••• 81 

Siege of Fort Henry, •••••• 87 

Simon Girty, 103 

Joshua Fleehart, 119 

Indian Fight on the Little Muskingum, . . . 129 

Escape of Return J. Meigs, 137 

Estill's Defeat, 144 

A Pioneer Mother, 154 

The Squatter's Wife and Daughter, .... 107 

Captain William Hubbell, 173 

Murder of Cornstalk and his Son, .... 185 

Massacre of Chicago, . 189 

Desertion of a young White Man from a party of Indians, 219 

Morgan's Triumph, . . . . . • . 229 

Massacre of Wyoming, 233 

Heroic Women of the West, 243 

Indian Stratagem Foiled, 250 

Blackbird, . . . • • • . .. * 265 

A Desperate Adventure, • • • • • 268 

\dventure of Two Scouts, • • • • 276 

A Young Hero of the West. . . • • 299 



PREFACE. 



To the lovers of thrilling adventure, the title of this 
work would alone be its strongest recommendation. The 
exploits of the Heroes of the West, need but a simple 
narration to give them an irresistible charm. They dis- 
play the bolder and rougher features of human nature in 
their noblest light, softened and directed by virtues that 
have appeared in the really heroic deeds of every age, 
and form pages in the history of this country destined to 
be read and admired when much that is now deemed more 
important is forgotten. 

It is true, that, with the lights of this age, we regard 
many of the deeds of our western pioneer as aggressive, 
barbarous, and unworthy of civilized men. But there is 
no truly noble heart that will not swell in admiration of 
the devotion and disinterestedness of Benjamin Logan, the 
self-reliant energy of Boone and "Whetzel, and the steady 
firmness and consummate military skill of George Rogers 
Clarke. The people of this country need records of the 
lives of such men, and we have attempted to present these 
in an attractive form. 



>, 



CAPTURE OF BOONE. 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



< 



I 



N all notices 
of border life, 
the name of 
Daniel Boone 
appears first 
— as the hero and the 
father of the west. In 
him were united those 
qualities which make 
the accomplished fron- 
tiersman — daring, ac- 
tivity, and circumspec- 
tion, while he was fitted 
beyond most of his contemporary borderers to lead and 
command. 

Daniel Boone was born either in Virginia or Pennsyl- 
vania, and at an early age settled in North Carolina, upon 
the banks of the Yadkin. In 1767, James Findley, the 

(ii) 




12 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



first white man who ever visited Kentucky, returned to the 
settlements of North Carolina, and gave such a globing 
account of that wilderness, that Boone determined to ven- 
ture into it, on a hunting expedition. Accordingly, in 
1769, accompanied by Findley and four others, he com- 
menced his journey. Kentucky was found to be all that 
the first adventurer had represented, and the hunters had 
fine sport. The country was uninhabited, but, during cer- 
tain seasons, parties of the northern and southern Indians 
visited it upon hunting expeditions. These parties fre- 
quently engaged in fierce conflicts, and hence the beautiful 
region was known as the "dark and bloody ground. ,, 

On the 22d of December, 1769, Boone and one of his 
companions, named John Stuart, left their encampment 
on the Ked river, and boldly followed a buffalo path far 
into the forest. While roving carelessly from canebrake 
to canebrake, they were suddenly alarmed by the appear- 
ance of a party of Indians, who, springing from their 
place of concealment, rushed upon them with a swiftness 
which rendered escape impossible. The hunters were 
seized, disarmed, and made prisoners. Under these ter- 
rible circumstances, Boone's presence of mind was admi- 
rable. He saw that there was no chance of immediate 
escape ; but he encouraged his companion and constrained 
himself to follow the Indians in all their movements, with 
so constrained an air, that their vigilance began to relax. 

On the seventh evening of the captivity of the hunter, 
the party encamped in a thick cane-break, and having 
built a large fire lay down to rest. About midnight, Boone, 
who had not closed his^eyes, ascertained from the deep 



1 



DANIEL BOONE. 



15 




DANIEL BOONE. 



breathing of all around him, that the whole party, including 
Stuart, was in a deep sleep. Gently extricating himself 
from the savages who lay around him, he awoke Stuart, 
informed him of his determination to escape, and exhorted 
him to follow without noise. Stuart obeyed with quickness 
and silence. Eapidly moving through the forest, guided 
by the light of the stars and the barks of the trees, the 
hunters reached their former camp the next day, but found 
it plundered and deserted, with nothing remaining to show 
the fate of their companions. Soon afterwards, Stuart 
was shot and scalped, and Boone and his brother who had 
come into the wilderness from North Carolina, were left 
alone in the forest. Nay, for several months, Daniel had 
not a single companion, for his brother returned to North 



16 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



Carolina for am munition. The hardy hunter was exposed 
to the greatest dangers, but he contrived to escape them all. 
In 1771, Boone and his brother returned to North Carolina, 
and Daniel, having sold what property he could not take 
with him, determined to take his family to Kentucky, and 
make a settlement. He was joined by others at " Powel's 
Valley/' and commenced the journey, at the head of a con- 
siderable party of pioneers. Being attacked by the In- 
dians, the adventurers were compelled to return, and it 
was not until 1774, that the indomitable Boone succeeded 
in conveying his family to the banks of the Kentucky, 
and founding Boonesborough. In the meantime, James 
Harrod had settled at the station called Harrodsburgh. 
Other stations were founded by Bryant and Logan — dar- 
ing pioneers ; but Boonesborough was the chief object of 
Indian hostility, and was exposad to almost incessant at- 
tack, from its foundation until after the bloody battle of 
Blue Licks. During this time, Daniel Boone was regarded 
as the chief support and counsellor of the settlers, and in 
all emergencies, his wisdom and valor was of the greatest 
service. He met with many adventures, and made some 
hair-breadth escapes, but survived all his perils and hard- 
ships and lived to a green old age, enjoying the respect 
and confidence, of a large and happy community, which 
his indomitable spirit had been chiefly instrumental in 
founding. He never lost his love of the woods and the 
chase, and within a few weeks of his death might have 
been seen, rifle in hand, eager in the pursuit of game. 



SIMON KENTON. 



LOGAN. 



Simon Kenton was born in Fauquier county, Virginia, 
on the 15th of May, 1755. His parents were poor, and 
until the age of sixteen his days seem to have been passed 
in the laborious drudgery of a farm. When he was about 

(19) 



20 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



sixteen, an unfortunate occurrence threw him upon his 
own resources. A robust young farmer, named Leitch 
man, and he were rival suitors for the hand of a young 
coquette, and she being unable to decide between them, 
they took the matter into their own hands and fought a 
regular pitched battle at a solitary spot in the forest. 
After a severe struggle, Kenton triumphed, and left his 
antagonist upon the ground, apparently in the agonies of 
death. Without returning for a suit of clothing, the 
young conqueror fled westward, assumed the name of 
Butler, joined a party of daring hunters, and visited 
Kentucky, (1778.) In the wilderness he became an ac- 
complished and successful hunter and spy, but suffered 
many hardships. 

In 1774, the Indian war, occasioned by the murder of 
the family of the chief, Logan, broke out, and Kenton 
entered the service of the Virginians as a spy, in which 
capacity he acted throughout the campaign, ending with 
the battle of Point Pleasant. He then explored the coun- 
try on both sides of the Ohio, and hunted in company 
with a few other, in various parts of Kentucky. When 
Boonesborough was attacked by a large body of Indians, 
Simon took an active part in the defence, and in several 
of Boone's expeditions, our hero served as a spy, winning 
a high reputation. 

In the latter part of 1777, Kenton, having crossed the 
Ohio, on a horse-catching expedition, was overtaken and 
made captive by the Indians. Then commenced a series 
of tortures to which the annals of Indian warfare, so deeply 
tinged with horrors, afford few parallels. Having kicked 




SIMON GIRTY. 



SIMON KENTON. 



23 



and cuffed him, the savages tied him to a a pole, in a 
very painful position, where they kept him till the next 
morning, then tied him on a wild colt and drove it swiftly 
through the woods to Chilicothe. Here he was tortured 
in various ways. The savages then carried him to Picka- 
way, where it was intended to burn him at the stake, but 
from this awful death, he was saved through the influence 
of the renegade, Simon Girty, who had been his early 
friend. Still, Kenton was carried about from village to 
village, and tortured many times. At length, he was 
taken to Detroit, an English post, where he was well- 
treated ; and he recovered from his numerous wounds. In 
the summer of 1778, he succeeded in effecting his escape, 
and, after a long march, reached Kentucky. 

Kenton was engaged in all the Indian expeditions up 
to Wayne's decisive campaign, in 1794, and was very 
serviceable as a spy. Few borderers had passed through 
so many hardships, and won so bright a reputation. He 
lived to a very old age, and saw the country, in which he 
had fought and suffered, formed into the busy and popu- 
lous state of Ohio. In his latter days, he was very poor, 
and, but for the kindness of some distinguished friends, 
would have wanted for the necessaries of life. 



Seofaje ^ocjehs 6i^lri(e. 



In natural genius for military command, few men of 
the west hare equalled George Rogers Clarke. The con* 
ception and execution of the famous expedition against 
Kaskaskia and Vincennes displayed many of those quali- 
ties for which the best generals of the world have been 
eulogized, and would have done honor to a Give. 

Clarke was born in Albermarle county, Virginia, in 
September, 1753. Like Washington, he engaged, at an 
early age, in the business of land surveying, and was fond 
of several branches of mathematics. On the breaking out 
of Dunmore's war, Clarke took command of a company, 
and fought bravely at the battle of Point Pleasant, being 
(24^ 




GEORGE ROGERS CLARKE. 



GEORGE ROGERS CLARKE. 



27 



engaged in the only active operation of the right wing of 
the Virginians against the Indians. Peace was concluded 
soon after, by Lord Dunmore, and Clarke, whose gallant 
bearing had been noticed, was offered a commission in the 
royal service. But this he refused, as he apprehended 
that his native country would soon be at war with Great 
Britain. 

Early in 1775, Clarke visited Kentucky as the favorite 
scene of adventure, and penetrated to Harrodsburgh. His 
talents were immediately appreciated by the Kentuckians, 
and he was placed in command of all the irregular troops 
in that wild region. In 1776, the young commander ex- 
erted himself with extraordinary ability to secure a politi- 
cal organization and the means of defence to Kentucky, 
and was so successful as to win the title of the founder of 
the commonwealth.* 

In partisan service against the Indians, Clarke was active 
and efficient ; but his bold and comprehensive mind looked 
to checking savage inroads at their sources. He saw at 
a glance, that the red men were stimulated to outrages by 
the British garrisons of Detroit, Yincennes and Kaskaskia, 
and was satisfied that to put an end to them, those posts 
must be captured. Having sent two spies to reconnoitre 
Kaskaskia and Vincennes, and gained considerable intelli- 
gence of the situation of the enemy, the enterprising com- 
mander sought aid from the government of Virginia to 
enable him to ca^ry out his designs. After some delay, 
money, supplies, and a few companies of troops were ob- 
tained. Clarke then proceeded to Corn Island, opposite 

* Butler. 



28 



HEROES 01 THE WEST. 



the present city of Louisville. Here the objects of the 
expedition were disclosed. Some of the men murmured, 
and others attempted to desert ; but the energy of Colonel 
Clarke secured obedience and even enthusiasm. 

The little band soon commenced its march through a 
wild and difficulty country, and on the 4th of July, 1778, 
reached a spot within a few miles of the town of Kaskas- 
kia. Clarke made his arrangements for a surprise with 
great skill and soon after dark, the town was captured 
without shedding a drop of blood. The inhabitants were 
at first terror-stricken and expected to be massacred, but 
they were soon convinced of their mistake by the bearing 
and representations of the Virginia commander. Cahokia 
was captured shortly afterwards, without difficulty. 

Clarke's situation was now extremely critical, and he 
duly appreciated the fact. Vincennes was still in front, 
so garrisoned, that it seemed madness to attempt its cap- 
ture by direct attack. But a bold offensive movement 
could alone render the conquests which had been made, 
permanent and advantageous. A French priest, named 
Gibault, secured the favor of the inhabitants of Vincennes 
for the American interest, and the Indians of the neigh- 
borhood were conciliated by the able management of Co- 
lonel Clarke, who knew how to win the favor of the men 
better than any other borderer ; but on the 29th of Jan- 
uary, 1779, intelligence was received at Kaskaskia, ^vhere 
Clarke was then posted, that Governor Hamilton had taken 
possession of Vincennes, and meditated the re-capture of 
the other posts, preparatory to assailing the whole frontier, 
as far as Fort Pitt. 



GEORGE ROG-ERS CLARKE. 



31 



Clarke determined to act upon the offensive immediately, 
as his only salvation. Mounting a galley with two four- 
pounders and four swivels, and manning it with forty- 
six men, he dispatched it up the Wabash, to the White 
River, and on the 7th of February, 1779, marched from 
Kaskaskia at the head of only one hundred and seventy 
men, over the drowned lands of the Wabash, against the 
British post. The march of Arnold by way of the Ken- 
nebec to Canada can alone be placed as a parallel with this 
difficult expedition. The indomitable spirit of Clarke sus- 
tained the band through the most incredible fatigues. On 
the 28th the expedition approached the town, still undis- 
covered. The American commander then issued a pro- 
clamation, intended to produce an impression that his fo'rce 
was large and confident of success, and invested the fort. 
So vigorously was the siege prosecuted that the garrison 
was reduced to straits, and Governor Hamilton compelled 
to capitulate. (24th of February, 1779.) This wa3 a 
brilliant achievement and reflected the highest honor upon 
Colonel Clarke and his gallant band. Detroit was now in 
full view, and Clarke was confident he could capture it if 
he had but five hundred men ; but he could not obtain 
that number, till the chances of success were annihilated, 
and thus his glorious expedition terminated. The object 
of the enterprise, however, which was the checking of In- 
dian depredations, was accomplished. Clarke afterwards 
engaged in other military enterpriser and held high civil 
offices in Kentucky ; but at the capture of Vincennes his 
fame reached its greatest brilliancy, and posterity will not 
willingly let it die. 



The real heroic spirit, which delights in braving the 
greatest dangers in the cause of humanity, was embodied 
in Benjamin Logan, one of the first settlers in Kentucky, 
This distinguished borderer was born in Augusta county, 
Virginia. At an early age he displayed the noble im- 
pulses of his heart ; for upon the death of his father, 
when the laws of Virginia allowed him, as the eldest son, 
the whole property of the intestate, he sold the farm and 
distributed the money among his brothers and sisters, re- 
serving a portion for his mother. At the age of twenty- 
one, Logan removed to the banks of the Holston, where 
(32) 



BENJAMIN LOGAN. 



85 



he purchased a farm and married. He served in Dun* 
more's wai. In 1775, he removed to Kentucky, and soon 
became distinguished among the hardy frontiersmen for 
firmness, prudence, an<? humanity. In the following year 
he returned for his family, and brought them to a small 
settlement called Logan's Fort, not far from Harrodsburgb.. 

On the morning of the 20th of May, 1777, the women 
were milking the cows at the gate of the little fort, and 
some of the garrison attending them, when a party of 
Indians appeared and fired at them. One man was shot 
dead, and two more wounded, one of them mortally. The 
whole party instantly ran into the fort, and closed the 
gate. The enemy quickly showed themselves at the edge 
of the canebrake, within rifle-shot of the gate, and seemed^ 
numerous and determined. A spectacle was now pre- 
sented to the garrison which awakened interest and com- 
passion. A man, named Harrison, had been severely 
wounded, and still lay near the spot where he had fallen. 
The poor fellow strove to crawl towards the fort, and suc- 
ceeded in reaching a cluster of bushes, which, however, 
were too thin to shelter his person from the enemy. His 
wife and children in the fort were in deep distress at his 
situation. The case was one to try the hearts of men. 
The numbers of the garrison were so small, that it was 
thought folly to sacrifice any more lives in striving to 
save one seemingly far spent. Logan endeavored to per- 
suade some of the men to accompany him in a sally ; but 
the danger was so appalling that only one man, John 
Martin, could be induced to make the attempt. The gate 
was opened, and the two sallied forth, Logan leading the 



36 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



way. They had advanced about five steps, when Harris 
son made a vigorous attempt to rise, and Martin, supposi 
him able to help himself, sprang back within the g£ . 
Harrison fell at full-length upon the grass. Logan paused 
a moment after the retreat of Martin, then sprang for- 
ward to the spot where Harrison lay, seized the wounded 
man in his arms, and in spite of a tremendous shower of 
balls poured from every side, reached the fort without re- 
ceiving a scratch, though the gate and picketing near 
him were riddled and his clothes pierced in several places. 

Soon afterwards, the heroic Logan again performed an 
act of self-devotion. The fort was vigorously assailed, 
and although the little garrison made a brave defence, 
their destruction seemed imminent, on account of the 
scarcity of ammunition. Holston was the nearest point 
where supplies could be obtained. But who would brave 
so many dangers in the attempt to procure it ? No one 
but Logan. After encouraging his men to hope for his 
speedy return, he crawled through the Indian encampment 
on a dark night, proceeded by by-paths, which no white 
man had then trodden, reached Holston, obtained a supply 
of powder and lead, returned by the same almost inac- 
cessible paths, and got safe within the walls of the fort* 
The garrison was inspired with fresh courage, and in a 
few days, the appearance of Colonel Bowman, with a body 
of troops, compelled the savages to retire. 

Logan led several expeditions into the Indian country, 
and won a high renown as one of the boldest and most 
successful of Kentucky's heroes. When the Indian de- 
predations were, in a great measure, checked, he devoted 



BENJAMIN LOGAN. 



37 



himself to civil affairs, and exerted considerable influence 
upon the politics of the country. Throughout his career, 
he was beloved and respected as a fearless, honest, and 
intelligent man. 



Captain Samuel Brady was the Daniel Boone of 
Western Pennsylvania. As brave as a lion, as swift as a 
deer, and as cautious as a panther, he gave the Indians 
reason to tremble at the mention of his name. As the 
captain of the rangers he was the favorite of General 
Brodhead, the commander of the Pennsylvania forces, 
and regarded by the frontier inhabitants as their eye 
and arm. 

The father and brother of Captain Brady being killed 
by the Indians, it is said that our hero vowed to revenge 
their murder, and never be at peace with the Indians of 
(38) 



GENERAL BRODHEAD. 



SAMUEL BRADY. 



41 



any tribe. Many instances of such dreadful vows, made 
m moments of bitter anguish, occur in the history of our 
border, und, when we consider the circumstances, we can 
scarcely wonder at the number, though, as Christians, we 
should condemn such bloody resolutions. 

Many of Brady's exploits are upon record ; and they 
are entitled to our admiration for their singular daring 
and ingenuity. One of the most remarkable is known in 
border history as Brady's Leap. The energetic Brodhead, 
by an expedition into the Indian country, had delivered 
such destructive blows that the savages were quieted for 
a time. The general kept spies out, however, for the 
purpose of guarding against sudden attacks on the settle- 
ments. One of the scouting parties, under the command 
of Captain Brady, had the French creek country assigned 
as their field of duty. The captain reached the waters 
of Slippery Rock, without seeing any signs of Indians. 
Here, however, he came on a trail, in the evening, which 
he followed till dark, without overtaking the enemy. The 
next morning the pursuit was renewed, and Brady over- 
took the Indians while they were at their morning meal. 
Unfortunately, another party of savages was in his rear, 
and when he fired upon those in front, he was in turn 
fired upon from behind. He was now between two fires, 
and greatly outnumbered. Two of his men fell, his toma- 
hawk was shot from his side, and the enemy shouted for 
the expected triumph. There was no chance of successful 
defence in the position of the rangers, and they were 
compelled to break and flee. 

Brady ran towards the creek. The Indians pursued, 



42 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



certain of making him captive, on account of the direc- 
tion he had taken. To increase their speed, they threw 
away their guns, and pressed forward with raised toma- 
hawk. Brady saw his only chance of escape, which wa3 
to leap the creek, afterwards ascertained to be twenty- 
two feet wide and twenty deep. Determined never to fall 
alive into the hands of the Indians, he made a mighty 
effort, sprang across the abyss of waters and stood rifle in 
hand upon the opposite bank. As quick as lightning, he 
proceeded to load his rifle. A large Indian, who had been 
foremost in pursuit, came to the opposite bank, and after 
magnanimously doing justice to the captain by exclaiming 
"Blady make good jump !" made a rapid retreat. 

Brady next went to the place appointed as a rendezvous 
for his party, and finding there three of his men, commenced 
his homeward march, about half defeated. Three Indians 
had been killed while at their breakfast. The savages did 
not return that season, to do any injury to the whites, and 
early in the fall, moved off to join the British, who had to 
keep them during the winter, their corn having been de- 
stroyed by General Brodhead. Brady survived all his 
perils and hardships and lived to see the Indians completely 
humbled before those whites on whom they had committed 
bo many outrages. 



MASSACRE OF MRS. WHETZEL AND HER CHILDREN. 




The Whetzel family is remembered in the west for the 
courage, resolution, and skill in border warfare displayed 
by four of its members. Their names were Martin, Lewis, 
Jacob, and John. Of these, Lewis won the highest re- 
nown, and it is doubtful whether Boone, Brady, or Kenton 
equaled him in boldness of enterprise. 

In the hottest part of the Indian war, old Mr. Whetzel, 
who was a German, built his cabin some distance from 
the fort at Wheeling. One day, during the absence of 
the two oldest sons, Martin and John, a numerous party 

(45) 



46 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



of Indians surrounded the house, killed, tomahawked and 
scalped old Mr. Whetzel, his wife, and the small children, 
and carried off Lewis, who was then about thirteen years 
old, and Jacob who was about eleven. Before the young 
captives had been carried far, Lewis contrived their escape. 
When these two boys grew to be men, they took a solemn 
oath never to make peace with the Indians as long as they 
had strength to wield a tomahawk or sight to draw a bead, 
and they kept their oath. 

The appearance of Lewis Whetzel was enough to strike 
terror into common men. He was about five feet ten inches 
high, having broad shoulders, a full breast, muscular limbs, 
a dark skin, somewhat pitted by the small pox, hair which, 
when combed out, reached to the calves of his legs, and 
and black eyes, whose excited and vindictive glance would 
curdle the blood. He excelled in all exercises of strength 
and activity, could load his rifle while running with almost 
the swiftness of a deer, and was so habituated to constant 
action, that an imprisonment of three days, as ordered by 
General Harmar, was nearly fatal to him. He had the 
most thorough self-reliance as his long, solitary and peri- 
lous expeditions into the Indian country prove. 

In the year of 1782, Lewis Whetzel went with Thomas 
Mills, who had been in the campaign, to get a horse, 
which he had left near the place where St. Clairsville now 
stands. At the Indian Spring, two miles above St. Clairs- 
ville, on the Wheeling road, they were met by about forty 
Indians, who were in pursuit of the stragglers from the 
campaign. The Indians and the white men discovered 
each other about the same time. Lewis fired first, and 




INDIAN CHIEF. 



LEWIS WHETZEL. 



49 



killed an Indian ; the fire from the Indians wounded Mr. 
Mills, and he was soon overtaken and killed. Four of 
the Indians then singled out, dropped their guns, and 
pursued Whetzel. Whetzel loaded his rifle as he ran. 
After running about half a mile, one of the Indians hav- 
ing got within eight or ten steps of him, Whetzel wheeled 
round and shot him down, ran on, and loaded as before. 
After going about three-quarters of a mile further, a se- 
cond Indian came so close to him, that when he turned to 
fire, the Indian caught the muzzle of his gun, and as he 
expressed it, he and the Indian had a severe wring for it ; 
he succeeded, however, in bringing the gun to the Indian's 
breast, and killed him on the spot. By this time, he, as 
well as the Indians, were pretty well tired ; the pursuif 
was continued by the remaining two Indians. "Whetzel, 
as before, loaded his gun, and stopped several times dur- 
ing the chase. When he did so the Indians treed them- 
selves. After going something more than a mile, Whet- 
zel took advantage of a little open piece of ground, 
over which the Indians were passing, a short distance be- 
hind him, to make a sudden stop for the purpose of shoot- 
ing the foremost, who got behind a little sapling, which 
was too small to cover his body. Whetzel shot, and broke 
his thigh ; the wound, in fhe issue, proved fatal. The last 
of the Indians then gave a little yell, and said, "No 
catch dat man — gun always loaded,' ' and gave up the 
chase ; glad, no doubt, to get off with his life. 

Another of this daring warrior's exploits is worthy of 
a place beside the most remarkable achievements of indi- 
vidual valor. In the year 1787, a party of Indians crossed 

4 



50 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



the Ohio, killed a family, and scalped with impunity. This 
murder spread great alarm through the sparse settlements 
and revenge was not only resolved upon, but a handsome 
reward was offered for scalps. Major McMahan, who often 
led the borderers in their hardy expeditions, soon raised 
a company of twenty men, among whom was Lewis Whet- 
zel. They crossed the Ohio and pursued the Indian trail 
until they came to the Muskingum river. There the spies 
discovered a large party of Indians encamped. Major 
McMahan fell back a short distance, and held a conference 
when a hasty retreat was resolved upon as the most pru- 
dent course, Lewis Whetzel refused to take part in the 
council, or join in the retreat. He said he came out to 
hunt Indians ; they were now found and he would either 
lose his own scalp or take that of a "red skin." All ar- 
guments were thrown away upon this iron-willed man ; he 
never submitted to the advice or control of others. His 
friends were compelled to leave him a solitary being sur- 
rounded by vigilant enemies. 

As soon as the major's party had retired beyond the 
reach of danger, Whetzel shouldered his rifle, and marched 
off into a different part of the country, hoping that fortune 
would place a lone Indian in his way. He prowled 
through the woods like a panther, eager for prey, until 
the next evening, when he discovered a smoke curling up 
among the bushes. Creeping softly to the fire, he found 
two blankets and a small copper kettle, and concluded 
that it was the camp of two Indians. He concealed him- 
self in the thick brush, in such a position that he could 
Bee the motions of the enemy. About sunset the two In- 



I 



LEWIS WHETZEL. 



53 



dians came in, cooked and ate their supper, and then sat 
by the fire engaged in conversation. About nine o'clock 
one of them arose, shouldered his rifle, took a chunk of 
fire in his hand, and left the camp, doubtless in search of 
a deer-lick. The absence of this Indian was a source of 
vexation and disappointment to Whetzel, who had been so 
sure of his prey. He waited until near break of day, and 
still the expected one did not return. The concealed 
warrior could delay no longer. He walked cautiously to 
the camp, found his victim asleep, and drawing a knife 
buried it in the red man's heart. He then secured the 
scalp, and set off for home, where he arrived only one day 
after his companions. For the scalp, he claimed and 
received the reward. 

Here is another of Lewis Whetzel's remarkable ex- 
ploits. Returning home from a hunt, north of the Ohio, 
he was walking along in that reckless manner, which is a 
consequence of fatigue, when his quick eye suddenly 
caught sight of an Indian in the act of raising his gun to 
fire. Both sprung like lightning to the woodman's forts, 
large trees, and there they stood for an hour, each afraid 
of the other. This quiet mode of warfare did not suit 
the restless Whetzel, and he set his invention to work to 
terminate it. Placing his bear-skin cap on the end of 
his ramrod, he protruded it slightly and cautiously as if 
he was putting his head to reconnoitre, and yet was hesi- 
tating in the venture. The simple savage was completely 
deceived. As soon as he saw the cap, he fired and it fell. 
Whetzel then sprang forward to the astonished red man, 
and with a shot from the unerring rifle brought him td 



54 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



the ground quite dead. The triumphant ranger then 
pursued his march homeward. 

But it was in a deliberate attack upon a party of four 
Indians that our hero displayed the climax of daring and 
resolution. "While on a fall hunt, on the Muskingum, he 
came upon a camp of four savages, and with but little 
hesitation resolved to attempt their destruction. He con- 
cealed himself till midnight, and then stole cautiously 
upon the sleepers. As quick as thought, he cleft the 
skull of one of them. A second met the same fate, and 
as a third attempted to rise, confused by the horrid yells, 
which Whetzel gave with his blows, the tomahawk stretched 
him in death. The fourth Indian darted into the dark- 
ness of the wood and escaped, although Whetzel pursued 
him for some distance. Returning to camp, the ranger 
scalped his victims and then left for home. W T hen asked on 
his return, " What luck ?" he replied, " Not much. I treed 
four Indians, and one got away." Where shall we look for 
deeds of equal daring and hardihood ? Martin, Jacob, 
and John Whetzel were bold warriors ; and in the course 
of the Indian war, they secured many scalps ; but they 
never obtained the reputation possessed by their brother, 
Lewis. All must condemn cruelty wherever displayed, 
but it is equally our duty to render just admiration to 
courage, daring, and indomitable energy, qualities in which 
the Whetzel brothers have rarely if ever been excelled. 

General Clark, the companion of Lewis in the celebrated 
tour across the Rocky Mountains, having heard much of 
Lewis Whetzel, in Kentucky, determined to secure his 
services for the exploring expedition. After considerable 




LEWIS WHETZEl/S STRATAGEM. 



LEWIS WHETZEL. 



57 



hesitation, "Whetzel consented to go, and accompanied the 
party during the first three months' travel, but then de- 
clined going any ^further, and returned home. Shortly 
after this, he leftragain on a flat-boat, and never returned. 
He visited a relation, named Sikes, living about twenty 
miles in the interior, from Natchez, and there made his 
home, until the summer of 1808, when he died, leaving a 
fame for valor and skill in border warfare, whi^fe vull not 
be allowed to perish. 



About 1784, horse-stealing was as common as hunting 
to the whites and Indians of the west. Thefts and re- 
prisals were almost constantly made. Some southern 
Indians having stolen horses from Lincoln county, Ken- 
tucky, three young men, named Caffree, M'Clure, and 
Davis, set out in pursuit of them. Coming in sight of an 
Indian town, near the Tennessee river, they met three 




A SOUTHERN INDIAN. 



CAFFREE, M'CLTj IE, AND a A. ,' T S. 



61 



red men. The two "parties m<*Ae signs of peace, shook 
hands, and agreed to travel together. 1> M;h wer*, suspi- 
cious, however, and at length, from various indications, 
the whites became satisfied of the treacherous intentions 
of the Indians, and resolved to anticipate iheuu Caffree 
being a very powerful man, proposed that ne himself 
should seize one Indian, while Davis and M'Clure should 
shoot the other* two. Caffree sprang boldly upon the 
nearest Indian, grasped his throat firmly, hurled him to 
the ground, and drawing a cord from his pocket attempted 
to tie him. At the same instant, Davis and M'Clure at- 
tempted to perform their respective parts. M'Clure 
killed his man, but Davis's gun missed fire. All three, 
i. e. the two white men, and the Indian at whom Davis 
had flashed, immediitely took trees, and prepared for a 
skirmish, while Caffree remained upon the ground with the 
captured Indian — both exposed to the fire of the others. 
Ia a few seconds, the savage at whom Davis had flashed, 
shot Caffree as he lay upon the ground and gave him a 
mortal wound — and was instantly shot in turn by M'Clure 
who had reloaded his gun. Caffree becoming very weak, 
called upon Davis to come and assist him in tying the In- 
dian, and directly afterwards expired. As Davis was 
running up to the assistance of his friend — the Indian re- 
leased himself, killed his captor, sprung to his feet, 
and seizing Caffree's rifle, presented it menacingly at 
Davis, whose gun was not in order for service, and who 
ran off into the forest, closely pursued by the Indian. 
M'Clure hastily reloaded his gun and taking the rifle which 
Davis had dropped, followed them for some distance into 



62 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



the forest, making all signals which had been concerted 
between them in case of separation. All, however, was 
vain — he saw nothing more of Davis, nor could he ever 
afterwards learn his fate. As he never returned to Ken- 
tucky, however, he probably perished. 

M'Clure, finding himself alone in the enemy's country, 
and surrounded by dead bodies, thought it prudent to 
abandon the object of the expedition and return to Ken- 
tucky. He accordingly retraced his steps, still bearing 
Davis' rifle in addition to his own. He had scarcely marched 
a mile, before he saw advancing from the opposite direc- 
tion, an Indian warrior, riding a horse with a bell around 
its neck, and accompanied by a boy on foot. Dropping 
one of the rifles, which might have created suspicion, 
M'Clure advanced with an air of confidence, extending his 
hand and making other signs of peace. The opposite party 
appeared frankly to receive his overtures, and dismounting, 
seated himself upon a log, and drawing out his pipe, gave 
a few puffs himself, and then handed it to M'Clure. In a 
few minutes another bell was heard, at the distance of 
half a mile, and a second party of Indians appeared upon 
horseback. The Indian with M'Clure now coolly informed 
him by signs that when the horseman arrived, he (M'Clure) 
was to be bound and carried off as a prisoner with his feet 
tied under the horse's belly. In order to explain it more 
fully, the Indian got astride of the log, and locked his legs 
together underneath it. M' Clure, internally thanking the 
fellow for his excess of candor, determined to disappoint 
him, and while his enemy was busily engaged in riding 
the log, and mimicking the actions of a prisoner, he very 




CAFFREE KILLED BY THE INDIAK. 



CAFFREE M'CLURE AND DAVIS. 



65 



quietly blew his brains out, and ran off into the woods. The 
Indian boy instantly mounted the belled horse, and rode 
off in an opposite direction. M'Clure was fiercely pursued 
by several small Indian dogs, that frequently ran between 
his legs and threw him down. After falling five or six 
times, his eyes became full of dust and he was totally blind, 
Despairing of escape, he doggedly lay upon his face, ex- 
pecting every instant to feel the edge of the tomahawk. 
To his astonishment, however, no enemy appeared, and 
even the Indian dogs after tugging at him for a few mi- 
nutes, and completely stripping him of his breeches, left 
him to continue his journey unmolested. Finding every 
thing quiet, in a few moments he arose, and taking up his 
gun continued his march to Kentucky. 



Cities r: ol]^sfoi). 



In March, 1790. ° : joat, containing four men and two 
women, passing down the Ohio, was induced by some 
renegade whiles to approach the shore, near the mouth 
of the Sciota, and then attacked by a large party of In- 
dians. A Mr. John May and one of the women were 
shot dead, and the others then surrendered. The chief 
of the band was an old warrior, named Chickatommo, and 
(66) 




MESSHAWA. 



CHARLES JOHNSTON. 



69 



under his command were a number of renowned red men. 
When the prisoners were distributed, a young man namec 
Charles Johnson, was given to a young Shawanee chief 
who is represented to have been a noble character. His 
name was Messhawa, and he had just reached the age 
of manhood. His person was tall and seemingly rather 
fitted for action than strength. His bearing was stately, 
and his countenance expressive of a noble disposition. He 
possessed great influence among those of his own tribe, 
which he exerted on the side of humanity. On the 
march, Messhawa repeatedly saved Johnson from the tor- 
tures which the other savages delighted to inflict, and the 
young captive saw some displays of generous exertion on 
the part of the chief which are worthy of a place in border 
history. 

The warriors painted themselves in the most frightful 
colors, and performed a war dance, with the usual accom- 
paniments. A stake, painted in alternate stripes of black 
and vermilion, was fixed in the ground, and the dancers 
moved in rapid but measured evolutions around it. They 
recounted, with great energy, the wrongs they had received 
from the whites. — Their lands had been taken from them — 
their corn cut up — their villages burnt — their friends 
slaughtered — every injury which they had received was 
dwelt upon, until their passions had become inflamed be- 
yond control. Suddenly, Chickatommo darted from the 
circle of dancers, and with eyes flashing fire, ran up to 
the spot where Johnston was sitting, calmly contemplating 
the spectacle before him. When within reach he struck 
him a furious blow with his fist, and was preparing to re* 



70 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



peat it, when Johnston seized him by the arms, and has- 
tily demanded the cause of such unprovoked violence. 
Chickatommo, grinding his teeth with rage, shouted 
" Sit down, sit down!" Johnston obeyed, and the In- 
dian, perceiving the two childron within ten steps of him, 
snatched up a tomahawk, and advanced upon them with a 
quick step, and a determined look. The terrified little 
creatures instantly arose from tk* log on which they were 
sitting, and fled into the woods, uttering the most piercing 
screams, while their pursuer rapidly gained upon them 
with uplifted tomahawk. The girl, being the youngest, 
was soon overtaken, and would nave been tomahawked, 
had not Messhawa bounded liko a deer to her relief. He 
arrived barely in time to arrest the uplifted tomahawk 
of Chickatommo, after which, he seized him by the collar 
and hurled him violently backward to the distance of 
several paces. Snatching up the child in his arms, he 
then ran after the brother, intending to secure him like- 
wise from the fury of his companion, but the boy, miscon- 
struing his intention, continued his flight with such ra- 
pidity, and doubled several times with such address, that 
the chase was prolonged to the distance of several hun- 
dred yards. At length Messhawa succeeded in taking 
him. The boy, thinking himself lost, uttered a wild cry, 
which was echoed by his sister, but both were instantly 
calmed. Messhawa took them in his arms, spoke to them 
kindly, and soon convinced them that they had nothing 
\o fear from him. He quickly reappeared, leading them 
gently by the hand, and soothing them in the Indian lan- 
guage, until they both clung to him closely for protection. 



CHICKATOMMO. 



CHARLES JOHNSTON. 



73 



No other incident disturbed the progress of the ceremo- 
nies, nor did Chickatomnio appear to resent the violent 
interference of Messhawa. 

After undergoing many hardships, Johnston was taken 
to Sandusky, where he was ransomed by a French trader. 
Messhawa took leave of his young captive with many 
expressions of esteem and friendship. This noble chief 
was in the battle of the Fallen Timber and afterwards be- 
came a devoted follower of the great Tecumseh — thus 
proving that while he was as humane as a civilized man, 
he was patriotic and high-spirited enough to resent the 
wrongs of his people. He was killed at the battle of the 
Thames, where the power of the Shawanees was for ever 
crashed. 



Joseph JLogsfo*). 

Big Joe Logston was a noted character in the early 
history of the west. He was born and reared among the 
Alleghany mountains, near the source of the north branch 
of the Potomac, some twenty or thirty miles from any 
settlement. He was tall, muscular, excelled in all the 
athletic sports of the border, and was a first-rate shot. 
Soon after Joe arrived at years of discretion, his parents 
died, and he went out to the wilds of Kentucky. There 
(74) 



JOSEPH LOGSTON. 



77 



Indian incursions compelled him to take refuge in a fort. 
This pent up life was not at all to Joe's taste. He soon 
became very restless, and every day insisted on going out 
with others to hunt up cattle. At length no one would 
accompany him, and he resolved to go out alone. He rode 
the greater part of the day without finding any cattle, 
and then concluded to return to the fort. As he was 
riding along, eating some grapes, with which he had filled 
his hat, he heard the reports of the two rifles ; one ball 
passed through the paps of his breast, which were very 
prominent, and the other struck the horse behind the 
saddle, causing the beast to sink in its tracks. 

Joe was on his feet in an instant and might have taken 
to his heels with the chances of escape greatly in his favor. 
But to him flight was never agreeable. The moment the 
guns were fired, an Indian sprang forward with an uplifted 
tomahawk ; but as Joe raised his rifle, the savage jumped 
behind two saplings, and kept springing from one to the 
other to cover his body. The other Indian was soon dis- 
covered behind a tree loading his gun. When in the act 
of pushing down his bullet, he exposed his hips and Joe 
fired a load into him. The first Indian then sprang for- 
ward and threw his tomahawk at the head of the white 
warrior, who dodged it. Joe then clubbed his gun and 
made at the savage, thinking to knock him down. In 
striking, he missed, and the gun now reduced to the naked 
barrel, flew out of his hands. The two men then sprang 
at each other with no other weapons than those of nature. 
A desperate scuffle ensued. Joe could throw the Indian 
down, but could not hold him there. At length, however, 



78 



HEKOES OF THE WEST. 



by repeated heavy blows, lie succeeded in keeping him 
down, and tried to choke him -with the left hand while he 
kept the right free for contingencies. Directly, Joe saw 
the savage trying to draw a knife, from its sheath, and 
waiting till it was about half way out, he grasped it quickly 
and sank it up to the handle in the breast of his foe, who 
groaned and expired. 9 , 

Springing to his feet, J oe saw the Indian he had crippled, 
propped against a log, trying to raise his gun to fire, but 
falling forward, every time. he. made the attempt. The 
borderer, having enough of fighting for one day, and not 
caring to be killed by a crippled Indian, made for the fort, 
where he arrived about nightfall. He was blood and dirt 
from crown to toe, and without horse, hat, or gun. 

The next morning a party went to Joe'^ battle-ground. 
On looking round, they found a trail, as if something had 
been dragged away, and at a, little distance they came 
upon the big Indian, covered up with leaves. About a 
hundred yards farther, they found the ^Indian Joe had 
crippled, lying on his back, with his own knife sticking up 
to the hilt in his body, just below the breast bone, evidently 
to show that he had killed himself. Some years after this 
fight, Big J oe Logston lost his life in a contest with a gang 
of outlaws. He was one of those characters who were ne- 
cessary to the settlement of the west, but who would not 
have been highly esteemed in civilized society. 



I 



Jesse Hughes was bom and reared in Clarksburg, 
Harrison county, Virginia, on the head-waters of the Mo- 
nongahela. He was a light-built, active man, and from 
his constant practice became one of the best hunters and 
Indian fighters on the frontier. Having a perfect know- 
ledge of all the artifices of the Indians, he was quick to 
devise expedients to frustrate them. Of this, the following 
exploit is an illustration. At a time of great danger 
from Indian incursions, when the citizens in the neigh- 
borhood where in a fort at Clarksburgh, Hughes one 
morning observed a lad very hurriedly engaged in fixing 
his gun. 

6 (81) 



82 



HEROES OE THE WEST. 



"Jim/' said he, "what are you doing that for?" 

" I am going to shoot a turkey that I hear gobbling on 
the hill side," replied Jim. 

"I hear no turkey," said Hughes. 

"Listen," said Jim. " There, didn't you hear it? 
Listen again !" 

"Well," said Hughes, after hearing it repeated, "I'll 
go and kill it." 

" No you won't. It's my turkey. I heard it first," 
said Jim. 

"Well," said Hughes, "but you know I am the best 
marksman ; and besides, I don't want the turkey, you 
may have it." 

The lad then agreed that Hughes should go and kill it 
for him. Hughes went out of the fort on the side that 
was farthest from the supposed turkey, and running along 
the river, went up a ravine and came in on the rear, where, 
as he expected, he saw an Indian, sitting on a chestnut 
stump, surrounded by sprouts, gobbling and watching t<? 
see if any one would come from the fort to kill the turkey. 
Hughes crept up and shot him dead. The successful 
ranger then took off the scalp, and went into the fort, 
where Jim was waiting for the prize. 

" There, now," said Jim, "you have let the turkey 
go. I would have killed it if I had gone." 

"No," said Hughes, "I didn't let it go," and he threw 
down the scalp." There, take your turkey, Jim; I don't 
want it." 

The lad nearly fainted, as he thought of the death ha 



JESSE HUMES. 



83 



had so narrowly escaped, owing to the keen perception 
and good management of Mr. Hughes. 

The sagacity of our border hero was fully proved upon 
another occasion. About 1790, the Indians visited 
Clarksburgh, in the night, and contrived to steal a few 
horses, with which they made a hasty retreat. About 
daylight the next morning, a party of twenty-five or thirty 
men, among whom was Jesse Hughes, started in pursuit. 
They found a trail just outside of the settlement, and from 
the signs, supposed that the marauding party consisted 
of eight or ten Indians. A council was held to determine 
how the pursuit should be continued. Mr. Hughes was 
opposed to following the trail. He said he could pilot the 
party to the spot where the Indians would cross the Ohio, 
by a nearer way than the enemy could go, and thus render 
success certain. But the captain of the party insisted on 
following the trail. Mr. Hughes then pointed out the 
dangers of such a course. Suddenly, the captain, with 
unreasonable obstinacy, called aloud to those who were 
brave to follow him and let the cowards go home. Hughes 
knew the captain's remark was intended for him, but 
smothered his indignation and went on with the party. 

They had not pursued very far when the trail went down 
a drain, where the ridge on one side was very steep, with 
a ledge of rocks for a considerable distance. On the top 
of the cliff, two Indians lay in ambush, and when the 
company got opposite to them, they made a noise, which 
caused the whites to stop ; that instant two of the com- 
pany were mortally wounded, and before the rangers 
could get round to the top of the cliff, the Indians made 



84 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



their escape with ease. This was as Hughes had pre- 
dicted. All then agreed that the plan rejected by the 
captain was the best, and urged Hughes to lead them to 
the Ohio river* This he consented to do, though fear- 
ful that the Indians would cross before he could reach 
the point. Leaving some of the company to take care 
of the wounded men, the party started, and arrived at 
the Ohio the next day, about an hour after the Iudians 
had crossed. The water was yet muddy in the horses' 
trails, and the rafts that the red men had used were 
floating down the opposite shore. The company was 
now unanimous for returning home. Hughes said he 
wanted to find out who the cowards were. He said that 
if any of them would go with him, he would cross the 
river, and scalp some of the Indians. Not one could be 
found to accompany the daring ranger, who thus had full 
satisfaction for the captain's insult. He said he would go 
by himself, and take a scalp, or leave his own with the 
savages. The company started for home, and Hughes 
went up the river three or four miles, then made a raft, 
crossed the river, and camped for the night. The next 
day, he found the Indian trail, pursued it very cautiously, 
and about ten miles from the Ohio, came upon the camp. 
There was but one Indian in it ; the rest were ail out 
hunting. The reel man was seated, singing, and playing 
on some bones, made into a rude musical instrument, 
when Hughes crept up and shot him. The ranger then 
took the scalp, and hastened home in triumph, to tell his 
adventures to his less daring companions. 




§iecje of Jotf Jfeif}Hj. 

The siege of Fort Henry, at the mouth of Wheeling 
creek, in the year 1777, is one of the most memorable 
events in Indian warfare — remarkable for the indomitable 
bravery displayed by the garrison in general, and for 
some thrilling attendant incidents. The fort stood imme- 
diately on the left bank of the Ohio river, about a quarter 
of a mile above Wheeling creek, and at much less dis- 
tance from an eminence which rises abruptly from the 
bottom land. The space inclosed was about three quarters 
of an acre. In shape the fort was a parallelogram, having 

(87) 



88 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



a block-house at each corner with lines of pickets eight 
feet high between. Within the inclosures was a store-house, 
barrack-rooms, garrison-well, and a number of cabins for 
the use of families. The principal entrance was a gateway 
on the eastern side of the fort. Much of the adjacent land 
was cleared and cultivated, and near the base of the hill 
stood some twenty-five or thirty cabins, which form the 
rude beginning of the present city of Wheeling. The fort 
is said to have been planned by General George Rogers 
Clarke ; and was constructed by Ebenezer Zane and John 
Caldwell. When first erected, it was called Fort Fincastle 
but the name was afterwards changed in compliment to 
Patrick Henry the renowned orator and patriotic governor 
of Virginia. 

At the time of the commencement of the siege, the gar- 
rison of Fort Henry numbered only forty-two men, some 
of whom were enfeebled by age while others were mere boys. 
All, however, were excellent marksmen, and most of them, 
skilled in border warfare. Colonel David Shepherd, was a 
brave and resolute officer in whom the borderers had full con- 
fidence. The store-house was well-supplied with small arms, 
particularly muskets, but sadly deficient in ammunition. 

In the early part of September, 1777, it was ascertained 
that a large Indian army was concentrating on the San- 
dusky river, under the command of the bold, active, and 
skilful renegade, Simon Girty. Colonel Shepherd had 
many trusty and efficient scouts on the watch ; but Girty 
deceived them all and actually brought his whole force 
of between four and five hundred Indians before Fort 
Henry before his real object was discovered. 




PATRICK HENRY. 



5 V 



SIEGE OF FORT HENRY. 



91 



On the 2Gth, an alarm being given all the inhabitants 
in the vicinity repaired to the fort for -safety. At break 
of day, on the 27th, Colonel Shepherd, wishing to dispatch 
an express to the nearest settlements for aid, sent a white 
man and a negro to bring in some horses. While these 
men were passing through the cornfield south of the fort, 
they encountered a party of six Indians, one of whom 
raised his gun and brought the white man to the ground. 
The negro fled and reached the fort without receiving any 
injury. As soon as he related his story, Colonel Shepherd 
dispatched Captain Mason, with fourteen men, to dislodge 
the Indians from the cornfield. Mason marched almost to the 
creek without finding any Indians, and was about to return, 
when he was furiously assailed in front, flank and rear by 
the whole of Girty's army. Of course, the little band was 
thrown into confusion, but the brave captain rallied his 
men, and taking the lead, hewed a passage through the 
savage host. In the struggle, more than half of the party 
were slain, and the gallant Mason severely wounded. An 
Indian fired at the captain at the distance of five paces 
and wounded, but did not disable him. Turning about, 
he hurled his gun, felled the savage to the earth, and then 
succeeded in hiding himself in a pile of fallen timbers, where 
he was compelled to remain to the end of the siege. Only 
two of his men survived the fight, and they owed their 
safety to the heaps of logs and brush which abounded in 
the cornfield. 

As soon as the perilous situation of Captain Mason be- 
came known at the fort, Captain Ogle was sent out with 
twelve men, to cover his retreat. This party fell into an 



92 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



ambuscade and two-thirds of the number were slain upon 
the spot. Captain Ogle found a place of concealment, 
where he was obliged to remain until the end of the siege. 
Sergeant Jacob Ogle, though mortally wounded, managed 
to escape, with two soldiers into the woods. 

The Indian army now advanced to the assault, with 
terrific yells. A few shots from the garrison, however, 
compelled them to halt. Girty then changed the order 
of attack. Parties of Indians were placed in such of the 
village-houses as commanded a view of the block-houses. 
A strong party occupied the yard of Ebenezer Zane, about 
fifty yards from the fort, using a paling fence as a cover, 
while the main force was posted under cover on the edge 
of a cornfield to act as occasion might require. 

Girty then appeared at the window of a cabin, with a 
white flag in his hand, and demanded the surrender of 
the fort in the name of his Britanic majesty. At this 
time, the garrison numbered only twelve men and two 
boys. Yet the gallant Colonel Shepherd promptly re- 
plied to the summons, that the fort should never be sur- 
rendered to the renegade. Girty renewed his proposition, 
but before he could finish his harangue, a thoughtless 
youth fired at the speaker and brought the conference to 
an abrupt termination. Girty disappeared, and in about 
fifteen minutes, the Indians opened a heavy fire upon the 
fort, and continued it without much intermission for the 
space of six hours. The fire of the little garrison, how- 
ver, was much more destructive than that of the assail- 
ants. About one o'clock, the Indians ceased firing and 
fell back against the base of the hill. 



THE ALAR3I AT IOKT HENRY. 



SIEGE OF FORT HENRY. 



95 



The colonel resolved to take advantage of the inter- 
mission to send for a keg of powder, which was known to 
be in the house of Ebenezer Zane, about sixty yards from 
the fort. Several young men promptly volunteered for 
this dangerous service ; but Shepherd could only spare 
one, and the young men could not determine who that 
should be. At this critical moment, a young lady, sister 
of Ebenezer Zane, came forward, and asked that she 
might be permitted to execute the service ; and so ear- 
nestly did she argue for the proposition, that permission 
was reluctantly granted. The gate was opened, and the 
heroic girl passed out. The opening of the gate arrested 
the attention of several Indians who were straggling 
through the village, but they permitted Mis3 Zane to pass 
without molestation. "When she reappeared with the 
powder in her arms, the Indians, suspecting the character 
of her burden, fired a volley at her, but she reached the 
fort in safety. Let the name of Elizabeth Zane be 
remembered among the heroic of her sex. 

About half-past two o'clock, the savages again ad- 
vanced and renewed their fire. An impetuous attack was 
made upon the south side of the fort, but the garrison 
poured upon the assailants a destructive fire from the two 
lower block-houses. At the same time, a party of eighteen 
or twenty Indians, armed with rails and billets of wood, 
rushed out of Zane's yard and made an attempt to force 
open the gate of the fort. Five or six of the number were 
shot down, and then the attempt was abandoned. The 
Indians then opened a fire upon the fort from all sides, 
except that next the river, which afforded no shelter to 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



96 



besiegers. On the north and east the battle raged fiercely. 
As night came on the fire of the enemy slackened. Soon 
after dark, a party of savages advanced within sixty yards 
of the fort, bringing a hollow maple log which they had 
loaded to the muzzle and intended to use it as a cannon. 
The match was applied and the wooden piece bursted, 
killing or wounding several of those who stood near it. 
The disappointed party then dispersed. 

Late in the evening, Francis Duke, son-in-law of Colo- 
nel Shepherd, arriving from the Forks of Wheeling, was 
shot down before he could reach the fort. About four 
o'clock next morning, Colonel Swearingen, with fourteen 
men, arrived from Cross Creek, and was fortunate enough 
to fight his way into the fort without losing a single man. 

This reinforcement was cheering to the wearied gar- 
rison. More relief was at hand. About daybreak, 
Major Samuel M'Culloch, with forty mounted men from 
Short Creek, arrived. The gate was thrown open, and 
the men, though closely beset by the enemy, entered the 
fort. But Major M'Culloch was not so fortunate. The 
Indians crowded round and separated him from the 
party. After several ineffectual attempts to force his 
way to the gate, he turned and galloped off in the direction 
of Wheeling Hill. 

When he was hemmed in by the Indians before the fort, 
they might have taken his life without difficulty, but they 
had weighty reasons for desiring to take him alive. From 
the very commencement of the war, his reputation as an 
Indian hunter was as great as that of any white man on 
the north-western border. lie had participated in so 




DARING FEAT Ctf ELIZABETH ZANE. 



T 



SIEGE OF FORT HENRY. 



99 



many rencontres that almost every warrior possessed a 
knowledge of his person. Among the Indians his name 
was a word of terror ; they cherished against him feelings 
of the most phrenzied hatred, and there was not a Mingo 
or Wyandotte chief before Fort Henry who would not have 
given the lives of twenty of his warriors to secure to him- 
self the living body of Major M'Culloch, When, there- 
fore, the man whom they had long marked out as the first 
object of their vengeance, appeared in their midst, they 
made almost superhuman efforts to acquire possession of 
his person. The fleetness of M'Colloch's well-trained steed 
was scarcely greater than that of his enemies, who, with 
flying strides, moved on in pursuit. At length the hunter 
reached the top of the hiil, and, turning to the left, darted 
along the ridge with the intention of making the best of 
his way to Shor' creek. A ride of a few hundred yards 
in that direction brought him suddenly in contact with a 
party of Indians who were returrjng to their camp from a 
marauding excursion to Mason's Bottom, on the eastern 
side of the hill. This party being too formidable in num- 
bers to encounter single-handed, the major turned his horse 
about and rode over his own track, in the hope of discovering 
some other avenue to escape. A few paces only of his 
countermarch had been made, when he found himself con- 
fronted by his original pursuers, who had, by this time, 
gained the top of the ridge, and a third party was dis- 
covered pressing up the hill directly on his right. He was 
now completely hemmed in on three sides, and the fourth 
was almost a perpendicular precipice of one hundred and 
fifty feet descent, with Wheeling creek at its base. The 



100 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



imminence of his danger allowed him but little time to 
reflect upon his situation. In an instant he decided upon 
his course. Supporting his rifle in his left hand and care- 
fully adjusting his reins with the other, he urged his horse 
to the brink of the bluff, and then made the leap which de- 
cided his fate. In the next moment the noble steed, still 
bearing his intrepid rider in safety, was at the foot of the 
precipice. M'Colloch immediately dashed across the creek, 
and was soon beyond reach of the Indians. 

After the escape of the major, the Indians concentrated 
at the foot of the hill, and soon after set fire to all the 
houses and fences outside of the fort, and killed about three 
hundred cattle. They then raised the siege and retired. 

The whole loss sustained by the whites during this re- 
markable siege, was twenty-six men killed and four or five 
wounded. The loss of the enemy was from sixty to one 
hundred men. As they removed their dead, exact infor- 
mation on the subject could not be obtained. 

The gallant Colonel Shepherd deserved the thanks of 
the frontier settlers for his conduct on this occasion, and 
Governor Henry appointed him county lieutenant as a 
token of his esteem. A number of females, who were in 
the fort, undismayed by the dreadful strife, employed 
chemselves in running bullets and performing various little 
services ; and thus excited much enthusiasm among the 
nen. Perhaps, a more heroic band was never gathered 
together in garrison than that which defended Fort Henry, 
and it would be unjust to mention any one as particularly 
distinguished. We have named the commander only be* 
;uu f 3e of his position. 




TREMENDOUS LEAP OF MAJOR M'COLLOCH. 



I 



During the long warfare maintained between the pio- 
neers of the west and the Indians, the latter were greatly 
assisted by some renegade white men. Of these, Simon 
Girty was the most noted and influential. He led several 
important expeditions against the settlements of Virginia 
and Kentucky, displayed much courage, energy, and con- 
duct, and was the object of bitter hatred on the frontier. 
Ptecent investigations into the stirring events of his career 
have shown that however bad he might have been, much 
injustice has been done his memory by border historians. 

Simon Girty was born and reared in Western Pennsyl- 

(103) 



HEROES OE THE WEST. 



vania, near the Virginia line. His parents are said to 
have been very dissipated, and this, perhaps, had some 
influence in disgusting him with life in the settlements. 
Becoming skilled in woodcraft, he served with young 
Simon Kenton, as a scout upon the frontiers. He joined 
the Virginia army in Dunmore's wars, and, it is said, 
showed considerable ambition to become distinguished as 
a soldier. He was disappointed, and so far from gaining 
promotion, was, for a trifling offence, publicly disgraced, 
it is said, through the influence of Colonel Gibson. The 
proud spirit of Girty could not brook such a blow. With 
a burning thirst for revenge, he fled from the settlements, 
and took refuge among the Wyandottes. 

The talents of the renegade were of the kind and of the 
degree to secure influence among the red men. Pie ex- 
celled the majority of them in council and field, and nei- 
ther forgave a foe, nor forgot a friend. He was successful 
in many expeditions after plunder and scalps, and spared 
none because they were of his own race. He was cruel 
as many of the borderers were cruel. Becoming an In- 
dian, he had an Indian's hatred of the whites. The bor- 
derers seldom showed a red man mercy, and they could 
not expect any better treatment in return. 

The exertions of Girty to save his friend, Simon Kenton, 
from a horrible death, have been noticed in another place. 
That he did not make such exertions more frequently on 
the side of humanity is scarcely a matter of wonder — 
inasmuch as he could not have done so consistently with 
a due regard to his own safety. After he had become a 
renegade, the borderers would not permit a return ; and 



COLONEL CRAWFORD AND HIS FRIENDS, PRISONERS* 



SIMON GIRTY. 



107 



as lie was forced to reside among the Indians, lie was 
right in securing their favor. Besides saving Kenton, he 
posted his brother, James Girty, upon the banks of the 
Ohio, to warn passengers in boats not to be lured to the 
6horo by the arts of the Indians, or of the white men in 
their service. This was a pure act of humanity. The 
conduct of Girty on another memorable occasion, the 
burning of Colonel "William Crawford, was more suspicious. 

In the early part of the year 1782, the incursions of 
the Indians became so harassing and destructive to the 
inhabitants of Western Pennsylvania, that an expedition 
against the Wyandotte towns was concerted, and the com- 
mand given to Colonel Crawford. On the 22d of May, 
the army, consisting of four hundred and fifty men, com- 
menced its march, and proceeded due west as far as the 
Moravian towns, where some of the volunteers deserted. 
The main body, however, marched on, with unabated 
spirit. The Indians, discovering the advance of the in- 
vaders gathered a considerable force, and took up a strong 
position, determined to fight. Crawford moved forward 
in order of battle, and on the afternoon of the 6th of June, 
encountered the enemy. The conflict continued fiercely 
until night, when the Indians drew off, and Crawford's 
men slept on the field. In the morning, the battle was 
renewed, but at a greater distance, and, during the day, 
neither party suffered much. The delay, however, was 
fatal to Crawford; for the Indians received large rein- 
forcements. As soon as it was dark, a council of war 
was held, and it was resolved to retreat as rapidly as 
possible. By nine o'clock, all the necessary arrangements 



108 



ER0ES CI IHE WEST. 



had been made, and the retreat began in good order. 
After an advance of about a hundred yards, a firing waal 
heard in the rear, and the troops, seized with a panic, 
broke and fled in confusi:::. each man trying to save him- 
self. The Indians came on rapidly in pursuit and plied 
the tomahawk and scalping-knife without mercy. Colonel 
Crawford and Dr. Knight were captured, at a distance 
from the main body — which was soon dispersed in every 
direction. 

On the morning of the 10th of June, Crawford, Knight, 
and nine other prisoners, were conducted to the old town 
of Sandusky. The main body of the Indians halted within 
eight miles of the village : but as Colonel Crawford ex- 
pressed great anxiety to speak with Simon Girty, who was 
then at Sandusky, he was permitted to go under the care 
of the Indians. On the morning of the 11th of June, the 
colonel was brought back from Sandusky on purpose to 
march into town vrith the other prisoners. To Knight's 
inquiry as to whether he had seen Girty, he replied in the 
affirmative, and added, that the renegade had promised to 
use his influence for the safety of the prisoners, though as 
the Indians were much exasperated by the recent outrages 
of the whites at <Tnaoenhnt:en upon the unresisting Mo- 
ravian red men, he was fearful that all pleading would be 
in vain. 

Soon afterwards, Captain Pipe, the great chief of the 
Delawares, appeared. This distinguished warrior had a 
prepossessing appearance and bland manners, and his 
language to the prisoners was kind. His purposes, how- 
ever, were bloody and revengeful. With his own hands 



X 1)1 AN rillEY. 



* 



SIMON GIRTY 



111 



he painted every prisoner black ! As they were conducted 
towards the town, the captives observed the bodies of four 
of their friends, tomahawked and scalped. This was re- 
garded as a sad presage. In a short time, they overtook 
the five prisoners who remained alive. They were seated 
on tne ground, and surrounded by a crowd of Indian 
squaws and boys, who taunted and menaced them. Craw- 
ford and Knight were compelled to sit down apart from 
the rest, and immediately afterwards the doctor was given 
to a Shawnee warrior, to be conducted to their town. The 
boys and squaws then fell upon the other prisoners, and 
tomahawked them in a moment. Crawford was then 
driven towards the village, Girty accompanying the party 
on horseback. 

Presently, a large fire was seen, around which were more 
than thirty warriors, and about double that number of 
boys and squaws. As soon as the colonel arrived, he was 
stripped naked, and compelled to sit on the ground. Th£ 
squaws and boys then fell upon him, and beat him severely 
with their fists and sticks. In a few minutes, a large 
stake was fixed in the ground, and piles of hickory poles 
were spread around it. 

Colonel Crawford's Lands were then tied behind his 
back ; a strong rope was produced, one end of which was 
fastened to the ligature between his wrists, and the other 
tied to the bottom of the stake. The rope was long enough 
to permit him to walk round the stake several times and 
then return. Fire was then applied to the hickory poles, 
which lay in piles at the distance of six or seven yarda 
from the stake. 



112 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



The colonel observing these terrible preparations, called 
to Girty, who sat on horseback, at the distance of a few 
yards from the fire, and asked if the Indians were going 
to burn him. Girty replied in the affirmative. The colo- 
nel heard the intelligence with firmness, merely observing 
that he would bear it with fortitude. When the hickory 
poles had been burnt asunder in the middle, Captain Pipe 
arose and addressed the crowd, in a tone of great energy, 
and with animated gestures, pointing frequently to the 
colonel, who regarded him with an appearance of unruffled 
composure. As soon as he had ended, a loud whoop burst 
from the assembled throng, and they all rushed at once 
upon the unfortunate Crawford. For several seconds, the 
crowd was so great around him, that K tit could not see 
what they were doing ; but in a short time, they had dis- 
persed sufficiently to give him a view of the colonel. 

His ears had been cut off, and the blood was streaming 
down each side of his face. A terrible scene of torture 
now commenced. The warriors shot charges of powder 
into his naked body, commencing with the calves of his 
legs, and continuing to his neck. The boys snatched the 
burning hickory poles and applied them to his flesh. As 
fast as he ran around the stake, to avoid one party of tor- 
mentors, he was promptly met at every turn by others, 
with burning poles, red hot irons, and rifles loaded with 
powder only ; so that in a few minutes nearly one hundred 
charges of powder had been shot into his body, which had 
become black and blistered in a dreadful manner. The 
squaws would take up a quantity of coals and hot ashes, 



CAPTAIN PIPE, 



SIMON GIRTY. 



115 



and throw them upon his body, so that in a few ninutes 
he had nothing but fire to walk upon. 

In the extremity of his agony, the unhappy colonel called 
aloud upon Girty, in tones which rang through Knight's 
brain with maddening effect : " Girty ! Girty !! shoot me 
through the heart !! Quick ! quick !! Do not refuse me !!" 
" Don't you see I have no gun, colonel !!" replied the rene- 
gade, bursting into a loud laugh, and then turning to an 
Indian beside him, he uttered some brutal jests upon the 
naked and miserable appearance of the prisoner. While 
this awful scene was being acted, Girty rode up to the spot 
where Dr. Knight stood, and told him that he had now had 
a foretaste of what was in reserve for him at the Shawnee 
towns. He swore that he need not expect to escape death, 
but should suffer it in all the extremity of torture. 

Knight, whose mind was deeply agitated at the sight 
of the fearful scene before him, took no notice of Girty, 
but preserved an impenetrable silence. Girty, after con- 
templating the colonel's sufferings for a few moments, 
turned again to Knight, and indulged in a bitter invective 
against a certain Colonel Gibson, from whom, he said, he 
had received deep injury ; and dwelt upon the delight with 
which he would see him undergo such tortures as those 
which Crawford was then suffering. He observed, in a 
taunting tone, that most of the prisoners had said, that 
the white people would not injure him, if the chance of 
war was to throw him into their power ; but that for his 
own part, he should be loath to try the experiment. " I 
think, (added he with a laugh,) that they would roast me 
alive, with more pleasure than those red fellows are now 



116 



HEROES OP THE WEST. 



broiling the colonel ! What is your opinion, doctor ? Do von 
think they would be glad to see me?" Still Knight made 
no answer, and in a few minutes Girty rejoined the Indians. 

The terrible scene had now lasted more than two hours, 
and Crawford had become much exhausted. He walked 
slowly around the stake, spoke in a low tone, and earnestly 
besought God to look with compassion upon him, and pardon 
his sins. His nerves had lost much of their sensibility, and 
he no longer shrunk from the firebrands with which they 
incessantly touched him. At length he sunk in a fainting 
fit upon his face, and lay motionless. Instantly an Indian 
sprung upon his back, knelt lightly upon one knee, made 
a circular incision with his knife upon the crown of his 
head, and clapping the knife between his teeth, tore the 
scalp off with both hands. Scarcely had this been done, 
when a withered hag approached with a board full of 
burning embers, and poured them upon the crown of his 
head, now laid bare to the bone. The colonel groaned 
deeply, arose, and again walked slowly around the stake ! 
But why continue a description so horrible ? Mature at 
length could endure no more, and at a late hour in the 
nis:ht, he was released fay death from the hands of his 
tormentors.* 

Whether Girty really took pleasure in the torture of 
Colonel Crawford, or was forced by circumstances to seem 
to enjoy it is a question which historians have generally 
been in too much haste to determine. It is well known 
that at the time of Crawford's expedition the Indians 
were very much exasperated by the cold-blooded slaughter 

* M'Clung. 



SIMON GIRTY. 



117 



of the Moravian red men at Guadenhutten— an atrocity 
without a parallel in border warfare, and to have seemed 
merciful to the whites for a single moment would have been 
fatal to Girty. Indeed, it is said, that, when he spoke of 
ransoming the colonel, Captain Pipe threatened him with 
death at the stake. Let justice be rendered even to the 
worst of criminals. 

Dr. Knight, made bold or desperate by the torture he 
had witnessed, effected his escape from the Shawnee war- 
rior to whose care he was committed, and after much suf- 
fering, reached the settlements. From him the greater 
portion of the account of Crawford's death is derived, and 
corrected by the statements of Indians present on the 
occasion. Simon Girty never forsook the Indians among 
whom he had made his home ; but his influence gradually 
diminished. Some accounts say that he perished in the 
battle of the Thames ; while others assert that he lived 
to extreme old age in Canada, where his descendants are 
now highly respected citizens. 



Extraordinary strength and activity, with the mos; 
daring courage and a thorough knowledge of life in the 
woods, won for Joshua Fleehart a high reputation among 
the first settler's of "Western Virginia and Ohio. When 
the Ohio Company founded its settlement at Marietta, in 
April, 1778, Fleehart was employed as a scout and a 
hunter. In this service he had no superior north of the 
Ohio. At periods of the greatest danger, when the In- 
dians were known to be much incensed against the whites, 
he would start from the settlement with no companion but 
(118) 




JOSHUA FLEEHART. 



JOSHUA FLEEHART. 



121 



his dog, and ranging within about twenty miles of an In- 
dian town, would build his cabin and trap and hunt dur- 
ing nearly the whole season. On one occasion this reck- 
less contempt of danger almost cost the hunter his life. 

Having became tired of the sameness of garrison life, 
and panting for that freedom among the woods and hills 
to which he had always been accustomed, late in the fall 
of 1795, he took his canoe, rifle, traps, and blanket, with 
no one to accompany him, leaving even his faithful dog 
in the garrison with his family. As he was going into 
a dangerous neighborhood, he was fearful lest the voice 
of his dog might betray him. With a daring and intre- 
pidity which few men possess, he pushed his canoe up the 
Sciota river a distance of fifteen or twenty miles, into the 
Indian country, amidst their best hunting-grounds for the 
bear and the beaver, where no white man had dared to 
venture. These two were the main object of his pursuit, 
and the hills of Brush creek were said to abound in bear, 
and the small streams that fell into the Sciota were well 
suited to the haunts of the beaver. 

The spot chosen for his winter's residence was within 
twenty-five or thirty miles of the Indian town of Chilli- 
cothe, but as they seldom go far to hunt in the winter, 
he had little to fear from their interruption. For ten or 
twelve weeks he trapped and hunted in this solitary re- 
gion unmolested ; luxuriating on the roasted tails of the 
beaver, and drinking the oil of the bear, an article of diet 
which is considered by the children of the forest as giving 
health to the body, with strength and activity to the limbs. 
His success had equalled his most sanguine expectations) 



122 



HEROES OE THE WEST. 



and the winter passed away so quietly and so pleasantly, 
that he was hardly aware of its progress. About the 
middle of February, he began to make up the peltry he 
had captured into packages, and to load his canoe with 
the proceeds of his winter's hunt, which for safety had 
been secreted in the willows, a few miles below the little 
bark hut in which he had lived. The day before that 
which he had fixed on for his departure, as he was returning 
to his camp, iust at evening Fleehart's acute ear caught 
the report of a rifle in the direction of the Indian towns, 
but at so remote a distance, that none but a backwoods- 
man could have distinguished the sound. This hastened 
his preparations for decamping. Nevertheless he slept 
quietly, but rose the following morning before the dawn : 
cooked and ate his last meal in the little hut to which he 
had become quite attached. 

The sua had just risen, while he was sitting on the trunk 
of a fallen tree, examining the priming and lock of his gun, 
casually casting a look up the river bank, he saw an Indian 
slowly approaching with his eyes intently fixed on the 
ground, carefully inspecting the track of his moccasins, 
left in the soft earth as he returned to his hut the evening 
before. He instantly cocked his gun. stepped behind a 
tree, and waited till the Indian came within the sure range 
of his shot. He then fired and the Indian fell. Rushing 
from the cover on his prostrate foe. he was about to apply 
the scalping knife ; but seeing the shining silver broaches, 
and broad bands on his arms, he fell to cutting them loose, 
and tucking them into the bosom of his hunting shirt. 
While busily occupied in securing the spoils, the sharp 




FLEEHART SHOOTING THE INDIAN. 



JOSHUA FLEEHART. 



125 



crack of a rifle and the passage of the ball through the 
bullet pouch at his side, caused him to look up, "when he 
saw three Indians within a hundred yards of him. They 
being too numerous for him to encounter, he seized his 
rifle and took to flight. The other two, as he ran, fired 
at him without effect. The chase was continued for seve- 
ral miles by two of the Indians, who were the swiftest 
runners. He often stopped and " treed, "hoping to get a 
shot and kill or disable one of them, and then overcome 
the other at his leisure, His pursuers also "treed," and 
by flanking to the right and left, forced him to uncover 
or stand the chance of a shot. 

He finally concluded to leave the level grounds, on 
which the contest had thus far been held, and take to the 
high hills which lie back of the bottoms. His strong, 
muscular limbs here gave him the advantage, as he could 
ascend the steep hill sides more rapidly than his pursuers. 
The Indians, seeing they could not overtake him, as a last 
effort stopped and fired. One of the balls cut away the 
handle of his hunting-knife, jerking it so violently against 
his side, that for a moment he thought he was wounded. 
He immediately returned the fire, and, with a yell of 
vexation, they gave up the chase. 

Fleehart made a circuit among the hills, and just at 
dark came in to the river, near where the canoe lay hid. 
Springing lightly on board, he paddled down stream. 
Being greatly fatigued with the efforts of the day, he lay 
down in the canoe, and when he awoke in the morning 

J o 

the boat was just entering the Ohio river. Crossing over 
to the southern shore, he, in a few days, pushed his eanor 



126 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



up to Farmer's Castle, without further adventure, where 
he showed the rich packages of peltry, as the proceeds 
of his winter's hunt, and displayed the brilliant silver 
ornaments, as trophies of his victory, to the envy and 
admiration of his less venturous companions.* 



* Hildreth's Pioneer History. 



A MOUNTED RANGER. 




F# oi) li]e Pile M^l^ty. 

In the latter part of September, 1789, an alarm being 
given that Indians had been seen in the Campus Martins, 
on the Ohio, a party consisting of five or six rangers, ten 
volunteer citizens, and twelve regular soldiers was collected 
for pursuit. 

The men went up in canoes to the mouth of Duck creek, 
where they left their water craft. The more experienced 
rangers soon fell upon the trail, which they traced across 
the wide bottoms on to the Little Muskingum. At a point 

9 (129) 



130 



HEROES OP THE WEST. 



about half a mile below where Conner's mill now stands, 
the Indians forded the creek. In a hollow, between the 
hills, about a mile east of the creek, they discovered the 
smoke of their camp fire. The rangers now divided the 
volunteers into two flanking parties, with one of the spies 
at the head of each, and three of their number to act in 
front. By the time the flankers had come in range of the 
camp, the Indians discovered their pursuers, by the noise 
of the soldiers who lagged behind, and were not so cautious 
in their movement. They instantly fled up the run on 
which they were encamped. Two of their number leaving 
the main body, ascended the point of a hill, with a ravine 
on the right and left of it. 

The rangers now began to fire, while the Indians, each 
one taking his tree, returned the shot. One of the two In- 
dians on the spur of the ridge was wounded through the 
hips, by one of the spies on the right, who pushed on man- 
fully to gain the flanks of the enemy. The men in front 
came on more slowly, and as they began to ascend the 
point of the ridge, Ned Henderson, who was posted on high 
ground, cried out " Kerr ! Kerr I there is an Indian be- 
hind that white oak, and he will kill some of you." Kerr 
instantly sprung behind a large tree, and Peter Anderson, 
who was near him, behind a hickory, too small to cover 
more than half his body, while John Wiser jumped down 
into the ravine. At that instant the Indian fired at An- 
derson, and as John looked over the edge of the bank to 
learn the effect of the shot, he saw Peter wiping the dust 
of the hickory bark out of his eyes. The ball grazed the 
tree, just opposite his nose, and glancing off did him no 




AN INDIAN BRAVE. 



I 



INDIAN FIGHT ON THE LITTLE MUSKINGUM. 133 

gerious harm, but filling his eyes with the dust, and cutting 
his nose with the splinters. At the same time Henderson, 
with others, fired at the Indian, and he fell with several 
balls through his body. The brave fellow who was killed 
lost his life in a noble effort to aid his friend, who had been 
wounded through the hips, and could not spring up on to 
the little bench, or break in the ridge, where he was 
standing. 

While occupied in this labor of love, the rangers on his 
flanks had so far advanced, that the shelter of the friendly 
tree could no longer secure him from their shots, as it had 
done while his enemies were more in front of him. The 
wounded Indian escaped for the present, although it is 
probable he died soon after. The other five Indians, there 
being seven in the party, seeing that their enemies out- 
numbered them so greatly, after firing a few times, made 
a circuit to the right and came up in the rear of the sol- 
diers, who were occupying themselves with the contents 
of the kettle of hog meat and potatoes, which the Indians 
in their hurry had left boiling over the fire. The first notice 
they had of their danger was the report of their rifles. It 
made a huge uproar among the musketeers, who taking 
to flight, ran in great alarm for protection to the rangers. 
As it happened the Indians were too far off to do much 
harm, and no one was injured but one poor fellow, who was 
shot through the seat of his trowsers, just grazing the 
skin. He tumbled into the brook by the side of the camp, 
screaming at the top of his voice, "I am kill'd, I am kill'd," 
greatly to the amusement of the rangers, who were soon 
at his side, and dragging him out of the water, searched 



134 



HEROES OF THE WEST 



in vain for the mortal wound. The dead Indian wag 
scalped, and his rifle and blanket taken as the legitimate 
plunder of a conquered foe. The other five retreated out 
of reach of the rangers, after their feat of frightening the 
soldiers. They returned to the garrison, well pleased 
that none of their men were killed, but much vexed with 
the soldiers, whose indiscretion had prevented their de- 
stroying the whole of the Indians, had they encircled them 
as first arranged by the leaders of the party. It served 
as a warning to the Indians not to approach too near the 
Yankee garrison, as their rangers were brave men, whose 
eyes and ears were always open.* 



* Hildreth's Pioneer History. 



THE DEFIANCE. 



fsc^e of ^dqh) J. ?tfelg3« 

During the continuance of the Indian wars, from 1790 
to 1795, it was customary for the inmates of all the gar- 
risons to cultivate considerable fields of Indian corn and 
other vegetables near the walls of their defences. Al- 
though hazardous in the extreme, it was preferable to 
starvation. For a part of that time no provisions could be 
obtained from the older settlements above, on the Monon 
gahela and Ohio; sometimes from a scarcity amongst 
themselves, and always at great hazard from Indians, 
who watched the river for the capture of boats. Another 
reason was the want of money ; many of the settlers hav> 

(137) 



138 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



ing expended a large share of their funds in the journey 
on, and for the purchase of lands, while others had not a 
single dollar ; so that necessity compelled them to plant 
their fields. The war having commenced so soon after 
their arrival, and at a time when not expected, as a for- 
mal treaty was made with them at Marietta, in January, 
1789, which by the way was only a piece of Indian diplo- 
macy, they never intended to abide by it longer than 
suited their convenience, and no stores being laid up for 
a siege, they were taken entirely unprepared. So des- 
perate were their circumstances at one period, that serious 
thoughts of abandoning the country were entertained by 
many of the leading men. Under these circumstances 
R. J. Meigs, then a young lawyer, was forced to lay 
aside the gown, and assume the use of both the sword and 
plough. It is true that but little ploughing was done, as 
much of the corn was then raised by planting the virgin 
soil with a hoe, amongst the stumps and logs of the clear- 
ing, after burning off the brush and light stuff. In this 
way large crops were invariably produced ; so that nearly 
all the implements needed were the axe and the hoe. It 
so happened that Mr. Meigs, whose residence was in 
Campus Martius, the garrison on the east side of the 
Muskingum river, had planted a field of corn on the west 
side of that stream in the vicinity of Fort Harmar. To 
reach this field the river was to be crossed near his resi- 
dence in a canoe, and the space between the landing and 
hi3 crop, a distance of about half a mile, to be passed by 
an obscure path through a thick wood. 

Early in June, 1792, Mr. Meigs, having completed the 




AN INDIAN WARRIOR. 



ESCAPE OP RETURN J. MEIGS. 



141 



labor of the day a little before night, set out on his return 
home in company with Joseph Symonds and a colored boy, 
which he had brought with him as a servant from Con- 
necticut. Immediately on leaving the field they entered 
the forest through which they had to pass before reaching 
the canoe. Symonds and the boy were unarmed ; Mr. 
Meigs carried a small shot-gun, which he had taken with 
him for the purpose of shooting a turkey, which at that 
day abounded to an extent that would hardly be credited 
at this time. Flocks of several hundred were not uncom- 
mon, and of a size and fatness that would excite the ad- 
miration of an epicure of any period of the world, even 
of Apicius himself. Meeting, however, with no turkies, 
he had discharged his gun at a large snake which crossed 
his path. They had now arrived within a few rods of 
the landing, when two Indians, who had been for some 
time watching their movements and heard the discharge 
of the gun, sprang into the path behind them, fired and 
shot Symonds through the shoulder. He being an excellent 
swimmer, rushed down the bank and into the Muskingum 
river ; where, turning on his back, he was enabled to 
support himself' on the surface until he floated down near 
Fort Harmar, where he was taken up by a canoe. His 
wound, although a dangerous one, was healed, and he was 
alive twenty years afterwards. The black boy followed 
Symonds into the river as far as he could wade, but being 
no swimmer, was unable to get out of reach of the Indian 
who pursued them, and was seized and dragged on shore. 
The Indian who had captured him was desirous of making 
him a prisoner, which he so obstinately refused, and made 



142 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



so much resistance that he finally tomahawked and scalped 
him near the edge of the water. To this alternative he 
was in a manner compelled, rather than lose both prisoner 
and scalp, as the rangers and men at Campus Martini 
had commenced firing at him from the opposite shore. The 
first shot was fired by a spirited black man in the service 
of Commodore Abraham Whipple, who was employed near 
^p. river at the time. 

From some accident, it appears that only one of the 
Indians was armed with a rifle, while the other had a toma- 
hawk and knife. After Symonds was shot, Mr. Meigs 
immediately faced about in order to retreat to Fort Harmar. 
The savage armed with the rifle, had placed himself in the 
path, intending to cut off his escape, but had no time to 
reload before his intended victim clubbed his gun and 
rushed upon his antagonist. As he passed, Mr. Meigs 
aimed a blow at his head, which the Indian returned with 
his rifle. From the rapidity of the movement, neither of 
them were seriously injured, although it staggered both 
considerably, yet neither fell to the ground. Instantly 
recovering from the shock, he pursued his course to the 
fort with the Indian close at his heels. Mr. Meigs was in 
the vigor of early manhood, and had, by frequent practice 
in the race, become a very swift runner. His foeman was 
also very fleet, and amongst the most active of their war- 
riors, as none but such were sent into the settlements on 
marauding excurions. The race continued for sixty or 
eighty rods with little advantage on either side, when Mr. 
Meigs gradually increased his distance a-head, and leap- 
ing across a deep run that traversed the path, the Indian 



ESCAPE OF RETURN J. MEIGS. 



143 



stopped on the brink, threw his tomahawk, and gave up 
the pursuit with one of those fierce yells which rage and 
disappointment both served to sharpen. It was distinctly 
heard at both the forts. About sixteen years since, an 
Indian tomahawk was ploughed up near this spot, and 
was most probably the one thrown at Mr. Meigs ; as the 
rescue and pursuit from Fort Harmar was so immediate 
upon hearing the alarm, that he had no time to recover 
it. With the scalp of the poor black boy, the Indians 
ascended the abrupt side of the hill which overlooked the 
garrison, and shouting defiance to their foes, escaped in 
the forest. 

The excitement was very great at the garrison, and 
taught the inmates an useful lesson ; that of being better 
armed and more on their guard when they went out on 
agricultural pursuits. Had Mr. Meigs tried any other 
expedient than that of facing his enemy and rushing in- 
stantly upon him, he must have lost his life, as the In- 
dian was well aware of his gun being unloaded. On his 
right was the river, on his left a very high hill ; beyond 
him the pathless forest, and between him and the fort his 
Indian foe. To his sudden and unexpected attack, to his 
dauntless and intrepid manner, and to his activity, he 
undoubtedly ed his life. 




One of the most remarkable pioneer fights, in the 
early history of the west, was that waged by Captain 
James Estill, and seventeen of his associates, on the 22d 
of March, 1782, with a party of Wyandotte Indians, 
twenty-five in number. Seventy-one years almost have 
elapsed since ; yet one of the actors in that sanguinary 
struggle, Rev. Joseph Proctor, of Estill county, Kentucky, 
survived to the 2d of December, 1844, dying in the full 
enjoyment of his faculties at the age of ninety. His wife, 
the partner of his early privations and toils, and nearly 
as old as himself, deceased six months previously. 
(144) 



SLAUGHTER OF MISS DINES. 



ESTILL'S DEFEAT. 



147 



On the 19th of March 1782, Indian rafts, without any 
cne on them, were seen floating down the Kentucky river, 
past Boonesborough. Intelligence of this fact was imme- 
diately dispatched by Colonel Logan to Captain Estill, 
at his station fifteen miles from Boonesborough, and near 
the present site of Richmond, Kentucky, together with a 
force of fifteen men, who were directed to march from 
Lincoln county to Estill's assistance, instructing Captain 
Estill, if the Indians had not appeared there, to scour the 
country with a reconnoitring party, as it could not be 
known at what point the attack would be made. 

Estill lost not a moment in collecting a force to go in 
search of the savages, not doubting, from his knowledge 
of the Indian character, that they designed an immediate 
blow at his or some of the neighboring stations. From 
his own and the nearest stations, he raised twenty-five 
men. Whilst Estill and his men were on this excursion, 
the Indians suddenly appeared around his station at the 
dawn of day, on the 20th of March, killed and scalped 
Miss Innes, and took Munk, a slave of Captain Estill, 
captive. The Indians immediately and hastily retreated, 
in consequence of a highly exaggerated account which 
Munk gave them of the strength of the station, and 
and number of fighting men in it. jSTo sooner had the 
Indians commenced their retreat, than the women in the 
fort (the men being all absent except one on the sick list.) 
dispatched two boys, the late General Samuel South and 
Peter Hacket, to take the trail of Captain Estill and his 
men, and, overtaking them, give information of what had 
occurred at the fort. The boys succeeded in coming up 



148 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



with Captain Estill early on the morning of the 21st, be- 
tween the mouths of Drowning creek and Red river. 
After a short search, Captain Estill's party struck the 
trail of the retreating Indians. It was resolved at once 
to make pursuit, and no time was lost in doing so. Five 
men of the party, however, who had families in the fort, 
feeling uneasy for their safety, and unwilling to trust 
their defence to the few who remained there, returned to 
the fort, leaving Captain Estill's party thirty-five in 
number. These pressed the pursuit of the retreating In- 
dians, as rapidly as possible, but night coming on they 
encamped near the Little Mountain, at present the site 
of Mount Sterling. 

Early next morning they put forward, being obliged to 
leave ten of the men behind, whose horses were too jaded 
to travel further. They had not proceeded far until they 
discovered by fresh tracks of the Indians, that they were 
not far distant. They then marched in four lines until 
about an hour before sunset, when they discovered six of 
the savages helping themselves to rations from the body 
of a buffalo which they had killed. The company was 
ordered to dismount. With the usual impetuosity of 
Kentuckians, some of the party fired without regarding 
orders, and the Indians fled. One- of the party, a Mr. 
David Cook, who acted as ensign, exceedingly ardent and 
active, had proceeded in advance of the company, and 
seeing an Indian halt, raised his gun and fired. At the 
same moment another Indian crossed on the opposite 
side, and they were both leveled with the same shot. This 
occurring in view of the whole company, inspired them 



CAPTAIN ESTILL. 



ESTILL'S DEFEAT. 



151 



all with a high degree of confidence. In the meantime, 
the main body of Indians had heard the alarm and re- 
turned, and the two hostile parties exactly matched in 
point of numbers, having twenty-five on each side, and 
were now face to face. The ground was highly favorable 
to the Indian mode of warfare ; but Captain Estill and 
his men, without a moment's hesitation, boldly and fear- 
lessly commenced an attack upon them, and the latter as 
boldly and fearlessly (for they were picked warriors) en- 
gaged in the bloody combat. It is, however, disgraceful 
to relate, that, at the very onset of the action, Lieutenant 
Miller, of Captain Estill's party, with six men under his 
command, " ingloriously fled" from the field, thereby 
placing in jeopardy the whole of their comrades, and 
causing the death of many brave soldiers. Hence, Estill's 
party numbered eighteen, and the Wyandottes twenty-five. 

The flank becoming thus unprotected, Captain Estill 
directed Cook with three men to occupy Miller's station, 
and repel the attack in that quarter to which this base act 
of cowardice exposed /the whole party. The ensign with 
his party were taking the position assigned, when one of 
them discovered an Indian and shot him, and the three 
retreated to a little eminence whence they thought greater 
execution could be effected with less danger to themselves, 
but Cook continued to advance without noticing the absence 
of his party until he had discharged his gun with effect, 
when he immediately retreated, but after running some 
distance to a large tree, for the purpose of shelter in firing, 
he unfortunately got entangled in the tops of fallen timber, 
and halting for a moment, received a ball which struck him 



152 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



just below the shoulder blade, and came out below his collar 
bone. In the meantime, on the main field of battle, at the 
distance of fifty yards, the fight raged with great fury, 
lasting one hour and three-quarters. On either side 
wounds and death were inflicted, neither party advancing 
or retreating. " Every man to his man, and every man 
to his tree." Captain Estill at this period was covered 
with blood from a wound received early in the action ; nine 
of his brave companions lay dead upon the field ; and 
four others were so disabled by their wounds, as to be 
unable to continue the fight. Captain Estill's fighting 
men were now reduced to four. Among this number was 
Joseph Proctor. 

Captain Estill, the brave leader of this Spartan band, 
was now brought into a personal conflict with a powerful 
and active Wyandotte warrior. The conflict was for a 
time fierce and desperate, and keenly and anxiously watched 
by Proctor, with his finger on the trigger of his unerring 
rifle. Such, however, was the struggle between these fierce 
and powerful warriors, that Proctor could not shoot without 
greatly endangering the safety of his captain. Estill had 
had his arm broken the preceding summer in an engage- 
ment with the Indians ; and, in the conflict with the war- 
rior on this occasion, that arm gave way, and in an instant 
his savage foe buried his knife in Captain Estill's breast ; 
buc in the very same moment, the brave Proctor sent a ball 
from his rifle to the Wyandotte's heart. The survivors then 
drew off as by mutual consent. — Thus ended this memo- 
rable battle. It wanted nothing but the circumstance of 
numbers to make it the most memorable in ancient or modem 



estill's defeat. 



153 



times. The loss of the Indians, in killed and wounded, 
notwithstanding the disparity of numbers after the shameful 
retreat of Miller, was even greater than that of Captain 
Estill. 

It was afterwards ascertained by prisoners who were 
recaptured from the Wyandotte, that seventeen of the In- 
dians had been killed, and two severely wounded. This 
battle was fought on the same day, with the disastrous 
battle of the Blue Licks, March 22d, 1782. 

There is a tradition derived from the Wyandotte towns, 
after the peace, that but one of the warriors engaged in 
this battle ever returned to his nation. It is certain that 
the chief who led on the Wyandottes with so much despera- 
tion, fell in the action. Throughout this bloody engage- 
ment the coolness and bravery of Proctor were unsurpassed. 
But his conduct after the battle has always, with those 
acquainted with it, elicited the warmest commendation. He 
brought off the field of battle, and most of the way to the 
station, a distance of forty miles, on his back, his badly 
wounded friend, the late brave Colonel William Irvine, so 
long and sc favorably known in Kentucky. 



The mothers of the west deserve as wide a fame as 
their fearless husbands and brothers. In no situation 
were courage and resolution so much required in women 
as in the western wilderness, during the Indian wars, 
and even the celebrated heroines of European history 
seem to us ordinary in comparison. 

In the fall of 1779, Samuel Daviess, who resided in 
Bedford county, Virginia, moved with his family to Ken- 
tucky, and lived for a time, at Whitley's station, in Lin- 
(154) 




SCALPING. 



A PIONEER MOTHER. 



157 



coin. After residing for some time in the station, he re- 
moved for a time to a place called Gilmer's Lick, some 
six or seven miles distant from said station, where he built 
a cabin, cleared some land, which he put in corn next 
season, not apprehending any danger from the Indians, 
although he was considered a frontier settler. But this 
imaginary state of security did not last long ; for one 
morning in August, 1782, having stepped a few paces 
from his door, he was suddenly surprised by an Indian 
appearing between him and the door, with tomahawk up- 
lifted, almost within striking distance. In this unexpected 
condition, and being entirely unarmed, his first thought 
was, that by running round the house, he could enter the 
door in safety, but to his surprise, in attempting to effect 
this object, as he approached the door he found the house 
full of Indians. Being closely pursued by the Indian first 
mentioned, he made his way into the cornfield, where he 
concealed himself with much difficulty, until the pursuing 
Indian had returned to the house. 

Unable as he was to render any relief to his family, 
there being five Indians, he ran with the utmost speed to 
the station of his brother, a distance of five miles. As 
he approached the station, his undressed condition told 
the tale of his distresses, before he was able to tell it him- 
self. Almost breathless, and with a faltering voice, he 
could only say, his wife and children were in the hands 
of the Indians. Scarcely was the communication made 
when he obtained a spare gun, and the five men in the 
station, well armed, followed him to his residence. When 
they arrived at the house, the Indians, as well as the fa- 



158 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



mily were found to be gone, and no evidence appeared 
that any of the family had been killed. A search was 
made to find the direction the Indians had taken; but owing 
to the dryness of the ground, and the adroit manner in 
which they had departed, no discovery could be made. 
In this study and perplexity, the party being all good 
woodsmen, took that direction in pursuit of the Indians, 
which they thought it most probable they would take. 
After going a few miles, their attention was arrested by 
the howling of a dog, which afterwards turned out to be 
a house-dog that had followed the family, and which the 
Indians had undertaken to kill, so as to avoid detection, 
which might happen from his occasionally barking. In 
attempting to kill the dog, he was only wounded, which 
produced the howling that was heard. The noise thus 
heard, satisfied them that they were near the Indians, and 
^enabled them to rush forward with the utmost impetuosity. 
Two of the Indians being in the. rear as spies, discovering 
the approach of the party, ran forward to where the In- 
dians were with the family — one of them knocked down 
the oldest boy, about eleven years old, and while in the 
act of scalping him, was fired at, but without effect. Mrs. 
Daviess, seeing the agitation and alarm of the Indians, 
saved herself and sucking child, by jumping into a sink 
hole. The Indians did not stand to make fight, but fled 
in the most precipitate manner. In that way the family 
was rescued by nine o'clock in the morning, without the 
loss of a single life, and without any injury but that above 
mentioned. So soon as the boy had risen on his feet, the 
first words he spoke were, " Curse that Indian, he has got 



A PIOKEEB MOTHER. 



161 



my scalp !" After the family had been rescued, Mrs. 
Daviess gave the following account of how the Indians 
had acted. 

A few minutes after her husband had opened the door 
and stepped out of the house, four Indians rushed in, 
whilst the fifth, as she afterwards learned, was in pursuit 
of her husband. Herself and children were in bed when 
the Indians entered the house. One of the Indians imme- 
diately made signs, by which she understood him to inquire 
how far it was to the next house. "With an unusual presence 
of mind, knowing how important it would be to make the 
distance as far as possible, she raised both her hands, first 
counting the fingers of one hand, then of the other — making 
a distance of eight miles. The Indian then signed to her 
that she must rise ; she immediately got up, and as soon 
as she could dress herself, commenced showing the Indians 
one article of clothing after another, which pleased them 
very much ; and in that way, delayed them at the house 
nearly two hours. In the meantime, the Indian who had 
been in pursuit of her husband, returned with his hands 
stained with poke berries, which he held up, and with some 
violent gestures, and waving of his tomahawk, attempted 
to induce the belief, that the stain on his hands was the 
blood of her husband, and that he had killed him. She 
was enabled at once to discover the deception, and instead 
of producing any alarm on her part, she was satisfied that 
her husband had escaped uninjured. 

After the savages had plundered the house of everything 
that they could conveniently carry off with them, they 
started, taking Mrs. Daviess and her children — seven m 

11 



162 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



number, as prisoners along with them. Some of the child- 
ren were too young to travel as fast as the Indians wished, 
and discovering, as she believed, their intention to kill 
such of them as could not conveniently travel, she made 
the two oldest boys carry them on their backs. The In- 
dians, in starting from the house, were very careful to leave 
no signs of the direction which they had taken, not even 
permitting the children to break a twig or weed, as they 
passed along. They had not gone far, before an Indian 
drew a knife and cut off a few inches of Mrs. Daviess' dress, 
so that she would not be interrupted in travelling. 

Mrs. Daviess was a woman of cool, deliberate courage, 
and accustomed to handle the gun so that she could shoot 
well, as many of the women were in the habit of doing in 
those days. She had contemplated, as a last resort, that 
if not rescued in the course of the day, when night came 
and the Indians had fallen asleep, she would rescue herself 
and children by killing as many of the Indians as she 
could — thinking that in a night attack as many of them 
as remained, would most probably run off. Such an at- 
tempt would now seem a species of madness ; but to those 
who were acquainted with Mrs. Daviess, little doubt was 
entertained, that if the attempt had been made, it would 
have proved successful. 

The boy who had been scalped, was greatly disfigured, 
as the hair never after grew upon that part of the head. 
He often wished for an opportunity to avenge himself upon 
the Indians for the injury he had received. Unfortunately 
for himself, ten years afterwards, the Indians came to tha 
neighborhood of his father and stole a number of horses. 



A PIONEER MOTHER. 



163 



Himself and a party of men went in pursuit of them, and 
after following them for some days, the Indians finding 
that they were likely to be overtaken, placed themselves 
in ambush, and when their pursuers came up, killed young 
Daviess and one other man ; so that he ultimately fell into 
their hands when about twenty-one years old. 

The next year after the father died ; his death being 
caused, as it was supposed, by the extraordinary efforts he 
made to release his family from the Indians. 

We cannot close this account, without noticing an act 
of courage displayed by Mrs. Daviess, calculated to exhibit 
her character in its true point of view. 

Kentucky, in its early days, like most new countries, 
was occasionally troubled with men of abandoned character, 
who lived by stealing the property of others, and after 
committing their depredations, retired to their hiding 
places, thereby eluding the operation of the law. One of 
these marauders, a man of desperate character, who had 
committed extensive thefts from Mr. Daviess, as well as 
from his neighbors, was pursued by Daviess and a party 
whose property he had taken, in order to bring him to 
justice. While the party were in pursuit, the suspected 
individual, not knowing any one was pursuing him, came 
to the house of Daviess, armed with his gun and tomahawk — 
no person being at home but Mrs. Daviess and her child- 
ren. After he had stepped in the house, Mrs. Daviess 
asked him if he would drink something — and having set a 
bottle of whiskey upon the table, requested him to help 
himself. The fellow not suspecting any danger, set his 
gun up by the door, and while drinking, Mrs. Daviess 



164 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



picked ap his gun. and placing herself in the door, had tha 
gun cocked and levelled upon him by the time he turned 
around, and in a peremptory manner, ordered him to take 
a seat, or she would shoot him. Struck with terror and 
alarm, he asked what he had done. She told him, he had 
stolen her Ivasoand's property, and that she intended to 
rakv :n~ :: on: In that ::n:ht::n, she heM him 

a prisoner, until the party of men returned and took bin 
iato their possession. 



THE SQUATTER'S WIFE. 



Ox the Illinois river, near two hundred miles from its 
junction with the Mississippi, there lived in 1812, an old 
pioneer, known in those days as ' ' Old Parker the squatter. 
His family consisted of a wife and three children, the oldest 
a boy of nineteen, a girl of seventeen, and the youngest a 
boy of fourteen. At the time of which we write, Parker 
and his oldest boy had gone in company with three Indians 
on a hunt, expecting to be absent some five or six days. — 

(167) 



168 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



The third day after the departure, one of the Indians re* 
turned to Parker's house, came in and sat himself down 
by the fire, lit his pipe and commenced smoking in silence. 
Mrs. Parker thought nothing of this, as it was no uncommon 
thing for one or sometimes more of a party of Indians to 
return abruptly from a hunt, at some sign they might con- 
sider ominous of bad luck, and in such instances were not 
very communicative. But at last the Indian broke silence 
with "ugh, old Parker die." This exclamation immedi- 
ately drew Mrs. Parker's attention, who directly enquired 
of the Indian, what's the matter with Parker ? The In- 
dian responded Parker sick, tree fell on him, you go, he 
die. Mrs. Parker then asked the Indian if Parker had 
sent for her, and where he was ? The replies of the Indian 
somewhat aroused her suspicions. She, however, came to 
the conclusion to send her son with the Indian to see what 
was the matter. The boy and Indian started. That night 
passed, and the next day too, and neither the boy or In- 
dian returned. This confirmed Mrs. Parker in her opinion 
that there was foul play on the part of the Indians. So 
she and her daughter went to work and barricaded the 
door and windows in the best way they could. The youngest 
boy's rifle was the only one left, he not having taken it 
with him when he went to hunt after his father. The old 
lady took the rifle, the daughter the axe, and thus armed 
they determined to watch through the night ; and defend 
themselves if necessary. They had not long to wait after 
night fall, for shortly after that some one commenced 
knocking at the door, crying out "Mother ! mother !" but 
Mrs. Parker thought the voice was not exactly like that of 



THE SQUATTER'S WIPE AND DAUGHTER. 



169 



her son — in order to ascertain the fact, she said " Jake, 
where are the Indians ?" The reply which was " urn gone/' 
satisfied her on that point. She then said, as if speaking 
to her son, "Put your ear to the latch-hole of the door I 
want to tell you something before I open the door." The 
head was placed at the latch-hole, and the old lady fired 
through the same spot and killed an Indian. She stepped 
back from the door instantly, and it was well she did so, 
for quicker than I have penned the last two words two rifle 
bullets came crashing through the door. The old lady 
then said to her daughter, " Thank God there are but two, I 
must have killed the one at the door — they must be the 
three who went on the hunt with your father. If we can 
only kill or cripple another of them, we will be safe ; now 
we must both be still after they fire again, and they will 
then break the door down, and I may be able to shoot 
another one ; but if I miss them when getting in, you must 
use the axe." — The daughter equally courageous with her 
mother assured her she would. Soon after this conver- 
sation two more rifle bullets came crashing through the 
window. A death-like stillness ensued for about five mi- 
nutes, when two more balls in quick succession were fired 
through the door, then followed a tremendous punching 
with a log, the door gave way, and with a fiendish yell an 
Indian was about to spring in, when the unerring rifle fired 
by the old lady stretched his lifeless body across the thresh- 
hold of the door. The remaining, or more properly the 
surviving Indian fired at random and ran, doing no injury. 
"Xow" said the old heroine to her undaunted daughter 
" we must leave." Accordingly with the rifle and the axe, 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



they went to the river, took the canoe, and without a 
mouthful of provision except one wild duck and two black 
birds which the mother shot, and which were eaten raw, 
did these two courageous hearts in six days arrive among 
the old French settlers at St. Louis. A party of about a 
dozen men crossed over into Illinois — and after an unsuc- 
cessful search returned without finding either Parker or his 
boys. They were never found. There are yet some of 
the old settlers in the neighborhood of Peoria who still 
point out the spot where " old Parker the squatter" lived. 




Ctypt^ii ifqbbeif. 



In the year 1791, when the Indians were very trouble* 
Borne on the banks of the Ohio, Captain William Hubbell, 
Mr. Daniel Light, Mr. William Plascut, Mrs. Plascut and 
eight children embarked in a flat-bottomed boat to proceed 
down the Ohio 

On their progress down the river, and soon after passing 
Pittsburgh, they saw evident traces of Indians along the 
banks, and there is every reason to believe that a boat 
which they overtook, and which, through carelessness, was 
suffered to run aground on an island, became a prey to 
these merciless savages. Though Captain Hubbell and 
his party stopped some time for it in a lower part of the 

(173) 



174 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



river, it did not arrive, and has never to their knowledge 
been heard of since. Before they reached the mouth of 
the Great Kenhawa, they had by several successive addi- 
tions, increased their number to twenty, consisting of nino 
men, three women, and eight children. The men, besides 
those mentioned above, were one John Stoner, an Irishman 
and a Dutchman, whose names are not recollected, Messrs. 
Ray and Tucker, and a Mr. Kilpatrick, whose two daughters 
also were of the party. Information received at Galliopolis 
confirmed the expectation, which appearance previously 
raised, of a serious conflict with a large body of Indians ; 
and as Captain Hubbell had been regularly appointed com- 
mander of the boat, every possible preparation was made 
for a formidable and successful resistance of the anticipated 
attack. The nine men were divided into three watches 
for the night, which were alternately to continue awake, 
and be on the look out for two hours at a time. The arms 
on board, which consisted principally of old muskets, much 
out of order, were collected, loaded, and put in the best 
possible condition for service. About sunset on that day, 
the 23d of March, 1792, the party overtook a fleet of six 
boats descending the river in company, and intended to 
continue with them, but as their passengers seemed to be 
more disposed to dancing than fighting, and as soon after 
dark, notwithstanding the remonstrances of Captain Hub- 
bell, they commenced fiddling and dancing instead of pre- 
paring their arms, and taking the necessary rest prepara- 
tory to battle, it was wisely considered more hazardous to 
be in such company, than to be alone. It was therefore 
determined to proceed rapidly forward by the aid of the 



CAPTAIN WILLIAM HUBBELL. 



175 



oars, and leave those thoughtless fellow-travellers behind. 
One of the boats, however, belonging to the fleet, commanded 
by a Captain Greathouse, adopted the same plan, and for 
a Tvhile kept up with Captain Hubbell, but all its crew at 
length falling asleep, that boat also ceased to be propelled 
by the oars, and Captain Hubbell and his party proceeded 
steadily forward alone. Early in the night a canoe was 
dimly seen floating down the river, in which were probably 
Indians reconnoitering, and other evident indications were 
observed of the neighborhood and hostile intentions of a 
formidable party of savages. 

It was now agreed, that should the attack, as was pro- 
bable, be deferred till morning, every man should be up 
before the dawn, in order to make as great a show as pos- 
sible of numbers and of strength ; and that, whenever the 
action should take place, the women and children should 
lie down on the cabin floor, and be protected as well as 
they could by the trunks and other baggage, which might 
be placed around them. In this perilous situation they 
continued during the night, and the captain, who had not 
slept more than one hour since he left Pittsburgh, was too 
deeply impressed with the imminent danger which sur- 
rounded him to obtain any rest at that time. 

Just as daylight began to appear in the east, and before 
the men were up and at their posts, agreeably to arrange- 
ment, a voice at some distance below them, in a plaintive 
tone, repeatedly solicited them to come on shore, as there 
were some white persons who wished to obtain a passage 
in their boat. This the captain very naturally and cor- 
rectly concluded to be an Indian artifice, and its only effect 



176 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



was to rouse the men, and place every one on his guard. 
The voice of entreaty was soon changed into the language 
of indignation and insult, and the sound of distant paddles 
announced the approach of the savage foe. At length 
three Indian canoes were seen through the mist of the 
morning rapidly advancing. With the utmost coolness 
the captain and his companions prepared to receive them. 
The chairs, tables, and other incumbrances were thrown 
into the river, in order to clear the deck for action. Every 
man took his position, and was ordered not to fire till the 
savages had approached so near, that, (to use the words 
of Captain Hubbell,) " the flash from the guns might singe 
their eye-brows and a special caution was given, that 
the men should fire successively, so that there might be no 
interval. On the arrival of the canoes, they were found to 
contain about twenty-five or thirty Indians each. As soon 
as they had approached within the reach of musket-shot, 
a general fire was given from one of them, which wounded 
Mr. Tucker through the hip so severely that his leg hung 
only by the flesh, and shot Mr. Light just below his ribs. 
The three canoes placed themselves at the bow, stern, and 
on the right side of the boat, so that they had an oppor- 
tunity of raking in every direction. The fire now com- 
menced from the boat, and had a powerful effect in check- 
ing the confidence and fury of the Indians. The captain 
after firing his own gun, took up that of one of the wounded 
men, raised it to his shoulder, and was about to discharge 
it, when a ball came and took away the lock ; he coolly 
turned round, seized a brand of fire from the kettle which 
served for a caboose, and applying it to the pan, discharged 



A SIOUX CHIEF. 

12 



CAPTAIN WILLIAM HUBBELL. 



179 



the piece with effect. A very regular and constant fire 
was now kept up on both sides. The captain was just in 
the act of raising his gun a third time, when a ball passed 
through his right arm, and for a moment disabled him. 
Scarcely had he recovered from the shock, and re-acquired 
the use of his hand, which had been suddenly drawn up 
by the wound, when he observed the Indians in one of the 
canoes just about to board the boat in its bow, where the 
horses were placed belonging to the party. So near had 
they approached, that some of them had actually seized 
with their hands the side of the boat. Severely wounded 
as he was, he caught up a pair of horsemen's pistols and 
rushed forward to repel the attempt at boarding. On his 
approach the Indians fell back, and he discharged a pistol 
with effect at the foremost man. After firing the second 
pistol, he found himself without arms, and was compelled 
to retreat ; but stepping back on a pile of small wood which 
had been prepared for burning in the kettle, the thought 
struck him, that it might be made use of in repelling the 
foe, and he continued for some time to strike them with it 
so forcibly and actively, that they were unable to enter 
the boat, and at length he wounded one of them so severely 
that with a yell they suddenly gave way. All the canoes 
then discontinued the contest, and directed their course to 
Captain Greathouse's boat, which was in sight. Here a 
striking contrast was exhibited to the firmness and intre- 
pidity which had been displayed. Instead of resisting the 
attack, the people on board of this boat retired to the cabin 
in dismay. The Indians entered it without opposition, and 
*owed it to the shore, where they killed the captain and 



180 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



a lad of about fourteen years of age. The "women tb^y 
placed in the centre of their canoes, and manning them 
with fresh hands, again pursued Captain Hubbell and party, 
A melancholy alternative now presented itself to these 
brave but almost desponding men, either to fall a prey to 
the savages themselves, or to run the risk of shooting the 
women, who had been placed in the canoes in the hope of 
deriving protection from their presence. But " self pre- 
servation is the first law of nature," and the captain very 
justly remarked, there would not be much humanity in 
preserving their lives at such a sacrifice, merely that they 
might become victims of savage cruelty at some subsequent 
period. 

There were now but four men left on board of Captain 
Hubbell's boat, capable of defending it, and the captain 
himself was severely wounded in two places. The second 
attack, however, was resisted with almost incredible firm- 
ness and vigor. Whenever the Indians would rise to fire, 
their opponents would frequently give them the first shot, 
which in almost every instance would prove fatal. Not- 
withstanding the disparity of numbers, and the exhausted 
condition of the defenders of the boat, the Indians at 
length appeared to despair of success, and the canoes suc- 
cessively retired to the shore. Just as the last one was 
departing, Captain Hubbell called to the Indian, who was 
standing in the stern, and on his turning round, discharged 
his piece at him. When the smoke, which for a moment 
obstructed the vision, was dissipated, he was seen lying on 
his back, and appeared to be severely, perhaps mortally 
wounded. 



CAPTAIN "WILLIAM HUBBELL. 



181 



Unfortunately the boat now drifted near to the shore, 
where the Indians were collected, and a large concourse, 
probably between four and five hundred, were seen rushing 
down on the bank. Ray and Plascut, the only men re- 
maining unhurt, were placed at the oars, and as the boat 
was not more than twenty yards from the shore, it was 
deemed prudent for all to lie down in as safe a position as 
possible, and attempt to push forward with the utmost 
practicable rapidity. While they continued in this situa- 
tion, nine balls were shot into one oar, and ten into the 
other, without wounding the rowers, who were hidden from 
view, and protected by the side of the boat and the blankets 
in its stern. During this dreadful exposure to the fire of 
the savages, which continued about twenty minutes, Mr. 
Kilpatrick observed a particular Indian, whom he thought 
a favorable mark for hi3 rifle, and, notwithstanding the 
solemn warning of Captain Hubbell, rose to shoot him, 
he immediately received a ball in his mouth, which passed 
out at the back part of his head, and was almost at the 
same moment shot through the heart. He fell among the 
horses that about the same time were killed, and presented 
to his afflicted daughters and fellow-travellers, who were 
witnesses of the awful occurrence, a spectacle of horror 
which we need not further attempt to describe. 

The boat was now providentially and suddenly carried 
out into the middle of the stream, and taken by the current 
beyond the reach of the enemy's balls. Our little band 
reduced as they were in numbers, wounded, afflicted, and 
almost exhausted by fatigue, were still unsubdued in spirit, 
and being assembled in all their strength, men, women, 



182 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



and children, with, an appearance of triumph gave three 
hearty cheers, calling to the Indians to come on again, if 
they were fond of the sport. 

Thus ended this awful conflict, in which out of nine 
men, two only escaped unhurt. Tucker and Kilpatrick 
were killed on the spot, Stoner was mortally wounded, and 
died on his arrival at Limestone, and all the rest, excepting 
Ray and Plascut were severely wounded. The women and 
children were all uninjured, excepting a little son of Mr. 
Plascut, who, after the battle was over, came to the captain, 
and with great coolness requested him to take a ball out 
of his head. On examination, it appeared that a bullet 
which had passed through the side of the boat, had pene- 
trated the forehead of this little hero, and remained under 
the skin. The captain took it out, and the youth, observing 
" that is not all," raised his arm, and exhibited a piece of 
bone at the point of his elbow, which had been shot off, and 
hung only by the skin. His mother exclaimed, " why did 
you not tell me of this?" " Because," he coolly replied, 
" the captain directed us to be silent during the action, and 
I thought you would be likely to make a noise if I told you. ' ■ 

The boat made the best of its way down the river, and 
reached Limestone that night. From that time forth no 
boat was assailed by Indians on the Ohio. 



I 




CORNSTALK. 



^Ifief of 6oh)3f^k ^3 i}k Son/. 



Cornstalk, the commander of the Indians in the battle 
of Point Pleasant, was possessed of a noble heart as well 
as a genius for war and negotiation. He was ever anxious 
to maintain an honorable place with the whites and they re- 
turned his friendly inclination by putting him to death. 

A Captain Arbuckle commanded the garrison of the fort, 
erected at Point Pleasant, after the battle fought by Ge- 
neral Lewis with the Indians at that place, in October, 
1774. In the succeeding year, when the revolutionary war 
had commenced, the agents of Great Britain exerted them- 
selves to excite the Indians to hostility against the United 

(185) 



186 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



States. The mass of Shawanees entertained a strong ani- 
mosity against the Americans. But, two of their chiefs, 
Cornstalk and Redhawk, not participating in that animosity 
visited the garrison at the Point, where Arbuckle continued 
to command. Cornstalk represented his unwillingness to 
take a part in the war, on the British side : but stated, 
that his nation, except himself and his tribe, were deter- 
mined on war with us, and he supposed, that he and his 
people would be compelled to go with the stream. On this 
intimation, Arbuckle resolved to detain the two chiefs, and 
a third Shawanees, who came with them to the fort, as 
hostages, under the expectation of preventing thereby any 
hostile efforts of the nation. On the day before these un- 
fortunate Indians fell victims to the fury of the garrison, 
Elenipsico, the son of Cornstalk, repaired to Point Pleasant 
for the purpose of visiting his father, and on the next day, 
two men belonging to the garrison, whose names were 
Hamilton and Gillmore, crossed the Kenhawa, intending 
to hunt in the woods beyond it. — On their return from 
hunting, some Indians who had come to view the position 
at the Point, concealed themselves in the weeds near the 
mouth of the Kenhawa, and killed Gillmore while endea- 
voring to pass them. Colonel Stewart and Captain Ar- 
buckle were standing on the opposite bank of the river, at 
that time and were surprised that a gun had been fired so 
near the fort, in violation of orders which had been issued 
inhibiting such an act. Hamilton ran down the bank, and 
cried out that Gillmore was killed. Captain Hall com 
manded the company to which Gillmore belonged. His 
men leaped into a canoe, and hastened to the relief of 



MURDER OF CORNSTALK AND HIS SON. 



18T 



Hamilton. They brought the body of Gillmore weltering 
in blood, and the head scalped, across the river. The canoe 
had scarcely reached the shore, when Hall's men cried out 
" Let us kill the Indians in the fort." Captain Hall placed 
himself in front of his soldiers, and they ascended the 
river's bank, pale vrith rage, and carrying their loaded fire 
locks in their hands. Colonel Stewart and Captain Arbuckle 
exerted themselves in vain, to dissuade these men, exas- 
perated to madness by the spectacle of Gillniore's corpse, 
from the cruel deed which they contemplated. They cocked 
their guns, threatening those gentlemen with instant death, 
if they did not desist, and rushed into the fort. 

The interpreter's wife, who had been a captive among 
the Indians, and felt an affection for them, ran to their 
cabin and informed them that Hall's soldiers were advanc- 
ing with the intention of taking their lives, because they 
believed that the Indians who killed Gillmore, had come 
with Cornstalk's son the preceding day. This the young 
man solemnly denied, and averred that he knew nothing 
of them. His father, perceiving that Elenipsico was in 
great agitation, encouraged him and advised him not to 
fear. " If the great Spirit," said he, "has sent you here to 
be killed, you ought to die like a man !" As the soldiers 
approached the door, Cornstalk rose to meet them, and 
received seven or eight balls which instantly terminated 
his existence. His son was shot dead in the seat which he 
occupied. The Red Hawk made an attempt to climb the 
chimney, but fell by the fire of some of Hall's men. The 
other Indian, says Colonel Stewart, " was shamefully man- 
gled, and I grieved to see him so long dying." 



188 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



This atrocious deed so exasperated the Shawanees that 
they immediately took up arms upon the side of the British, 
expressing their resolution to spare no American who should 
fall into their hands, and never to lay down arms while 
there was the remotest chance of successful hostility. Many 
a family in Virginia and Kentucky had reason to lament 
the slaughter of the noble Cornstalk and his son. 



Jfye ^s^cie of Bfiftcogo* 

On the site of the present city of Chicago, a fort was 
erected in 1803. Feeling secure under this protection, 
several families built cabins and began to cultivate the 
ground in the vicinity. The large and powerful tribe of 
Pottawatomies occupied the neighboring country. When 
the war of 1812 broke out, the fort at Chicago was gar- 
risoned by about fifty men, under the command of Captain 
Heald, and as it was so remote from the other American 

(189) 



190 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



posts, General Hull determined that it should be abandoned. 
The following account of the subsequent disastrous events 
is abridged from Brown's History of Illinois. 

On the 7th of August, 1812, in the afternoon, "\Yiime- 
meg, or Catfish, a friendly Indian of the Pottawatomie 
tribe, arrived at Chicago, and brought dispatches from 
General Hull, containg the first, and, at that time, the only 
intelligence of the declaration of war. General Hull's 
letter announced the capture of Mackinaw, and directed 
Captain Heald "to evacuate the fort at Chicago, if prac- 
ticable, and, in that event, to distribute all the United 
States property contained in the fort, and the United States 
factory or agency, among the Indians in the neighborhood 
and repair to Fort Wayne." Winnimeg having delivered 
his dispatches to Captain Heald, and stated that he was 
acquainted with the purport of the communication he had 
brought, urged upon Captain Heald the policy of remain- 
ing in the fort, being supplied, as they were, with ammu- 
nition and provisions for a considerable time. In case, 
however, Captain Heald thought proper to evacuate the 
place, he urged upon him the propriety of doing so imme- 
diately, before the Pottawatomies (through whose country 
they must pass, and who were as yet ignorant of the object 
of his mission) could collect a force sufficient to oppose 
them. This advice though given in great earnestness, was 
not sufficiently regarded by Captain Heald ; who observed, 
that he should evacuate the fort, but having received orders 
to distribute the public property among the Indians, he did 
not feel justified in leaving it until he had collected the 
Pottawatomies in its vicinity, and made an equitable dis- 




CAPTAIN HEALD IN COUNCIL WITH THE POTTAWATAMIES. 



THE MASSACRE OF CHICAGO. 



193 



tribution among them. TTinnemeg then suggested the ex- 
pediency of marching out and leaving every thing standing ; 
" while the Indians," said he, " are dividing the spoils, the 
troops will be able to retreat without molestation." This 
advice was also unheeded, and an order for evacuating the 
fort was read next morning on parade. Captain Heald, 
in issuing it, had neglected to consult his junior officers, as 
it would have been natural for him to do in such an emer- 
gency, and as he probably would have done had there no"; 
been some coolness between him and Ensign Ronan. 

The lieutenant and ensign, after the promulgation of 
this order, waited on Captain Heald to learn his intentions ; 
and being apprized ; for the first time, of the course he in- 
tended to pursue, they remonstrated against it. Heald, 
however, deemed it advisable to assemble the Indians and 
distribute the public property among them, and ask of 
them an escort thither, with the promise of a considerable 
sum of money to be paid on their safe arrival ; adding, 
that he had perfect confidence in the friendly professions 
of the Indians, from whom, as well as from the soldiers, 
the capture of Mackinaw had studiously been concealed. 
From this time forward, the junior officers stood aloof from 
their commander, and, considering his project as little 
short of madness, conversed as little upon the subject as 
possible. Dissatisfaction, however, soon filled the camp ; 
the soldiers began to murmur, and insubordination assumed 
a threatening aspect. 

The savages, in the mean time became more and more 

troublesome ; entered the fort occasionally, in defiance of 

the sentinels, and even made their way without ceremony 

13 



194 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



into the quarters of its commanding officer. On one oc- 
casion an Indian, taking up a rifle fired it in the parlor of 
Captain Heald ; some were of opinion that this was intended 
as the signal for an attack. The old chiefs at this time 
passed back and forth among the assembled groups, appa- 
rently agitated ; and the squaws seemed much excited, as 
though some terrible calamity was impending. No further 
manifestations, however, of ill-feeling were exhibited, and 
the day passed without bloodshed. So infatuated at this 
time was Captain Heald, that he supposed he had wrought 
a favorable impression upon the savages, and that the little 
garrison could now march forth in safety. 

The Indians from the adjacent villages having at length 
arrived, a council was held on the 12th of August. It was 
attended, however, only by Captain Heald on the part of 
the military ; the other officers refused to attend, having 
previously learned that a massacre was intended. This 
fact was communicated to Captain Heald ; he insisted, 
however, on their going, and they resolutely persisted in 
their refusal. When Captain Heald left the fort, they re- 
paired to the blockhouse, which overlooked the ground 
where the council was in session, and opening the port- 
holes, pointed their cannon in its direction. This circum- 
stance and their absence, it is supposed, saved the whites 
from massacre. 

Captain Heald informed the Indians in council, that he 
would next day distribute among them all the goods in the 
United States factory, together with the ammunition and 
provisions with which the garrison was supplied ; and de- 
sired of them an escort to Fort Wayne, promising them a 




BATTLE BETWEEN MOUNTED TROOPS AND THE INDIANS, 



THE MASSACRE OF CHICAGO. 



197 



reward on their arrival thither, in addition to the presents 
they were about to receive. The savages assented, with 
professions of friendship, to all he proposed, and promised 
all he required. 

The council was no sooner dismissed, than several ob- 
serving the tone of feeling which prevailed, and anticipat- 
ing from it no good to the garrison, waited on Captain 
Heald in order to open his eyes, if possible, to their con- 
dition. The impolicy of furnishing the Indians with arms 
and ammunition to be used against themselves, struck Cap- 
tain Heald with so much force, that he resolved, without 
consulting his officers, to destroy all not required for im- 
mediate use. 

On August 13th, the goods in the factory store were 
distributed among the Indians, who had collected near the 
fort ; and in the evening the ammunition, and also the 
liquor, belonging to the garrison, were carried, the former 
into the sally-port and thrown into the well, and the latter 
through the south gate, as silently as possible, to the river 
bank, where the heads of the barrels were knocked in, and 
their contents discharged into the stream. The Indians, 
however, suspecting the game, approached as near as pos- 
sible and witnessed the whole scene. The spare muskets 
were broken up and thrown into the well, together with 
bags of shot, flints, and gun-screws, and other things ; all, 
however, of but little value. 

On the 14th, the despondency of the garrison was for a 
while dispelled by the arrival of Captain Wells and fifteen 
friendly Miamies. Having heard at Fort Wayne of the 
error to evacuate Chicago, and knowing the hostile inten- 



198 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



tions of the Pottawatoniies, lie hastened thither in order 
to save, if possible, the little garrison from its doom. 
Having, on his arrival, learned that the ammunition had 
been destroyed, and the provisions distributed among the 
Indians, he saw there was no alternative. Preparations 
were therefore made for marching on the morrow. 

In the afternoon a second council was held with the 
Indians, at which they expressed their resentment at the 
destruction of the ammunition and liquor in the severest 
terms. Notwithstanding the precautions which had been 
observed, the knocking in of the heads of the whisky- 
barrels had been heard by the Indians, and the river next 
morning tasted, as some of them expressed it, " like strong 
grog." Murmurs and threats were everywhere heard; 
and nothing, apparently/ was wanting but an opportunity 
for some public manifestation of their resentment. 

The morning of the 15th dawned as usual ; the sun rose 
with uncommon splendor, and Lake Michigan " was a sheet 
of burnished gold." Early in the day a message was re- 
ceived in the American camp from To-pee-na-bee, a chief 
of the St. Joseph's band, informing them that mischief 
was brewing among the Pottawatoniies, who had promised 
them protection. 

About nine o'clock, the troops left the fort with martial 
music, and in military array. Captain Wells, at the head 
of the Miamies, led the van, his face blackened after the 
manner of the Indians. The garrison, with loaded arms, 
followed, and the wagons with the baggage, the women and 
children, the sick and the lame, closed the rear. The Pot- 
tawatoniies, about five hundred in number, who had pro- 



TO-PEE-NA-BEE. 



THE MASSACRE OF CHICAGO. 



203 



mised to escort them in safety to Fort Wayne leaving a 
little space, afterward followed. The party in advance 
took the beach road. They had no sooner arrived at the 
sand-hills which separate the prairie from the beach, about 
a mile and a half from the fort, when the Pottawatomies, 
instead of continuing in rear of the Americans, left the 
beach and took to the prairie ; the sand-hills of course 
intervened, and presented a barrier between the Pottawa- 
tomies and the American and Miami line of march. This 
divergence had scarcely been effected, when Captain Wells, 
who, with the Miamies was considerably in advance, rode 
back and exclaimed, " They are about to attack us ; form 
instantly and charge upon them." The word had scarcely 
been uttered, before a volley of musketry from behind the 
sand-hills was poured in upon them. The troops were 
brought immediately into a line and charged upon the bank. 
One man, a veteran of seventy, fell as they ascended. The 
battle at once became general. The Miamies fled in the 
outset ; their chief rode up to the Pottawatomies, charged 
them with duplicity, and, brandishing his tomahawk, said, 
" he would be the first to head a party of Americans, and 
return to punish them for their treachery." He then turned 
his horse and galloped off in pursuit of his companions, who 
were then scouring across the prairie, and nothing was seen 
or heard of them more. 

The American troops behaved gallantly ; though few in 
number, they sold their lives as dearly as possible. They 
felt, however, as if their time had come, and sought to forget 
all that was dear on earth. 

While the buttle was raging, the surgeon, Doctor Voorhes, 



202 



HEROES OE THE WEST. 



who was badly wounded, and whose horse had been shot 
from under him, approaching Mrs. Helm, the wife of Lieu- 
tenant Helm, (who was in the action, participating in all 
its vicissitudes,) observed, " Do you think," said he, " they 
will take our lives ? I am badly wounded, but I think not 
mortally. Perhaps we can purchase safety by offering a 
large reward. Do you think," continued he, " there is any 
chance ?" 

" Doctor Voorhes," replied Mrs. Helm, "let us not waste 
the few moments which yet remain in idle or ill-founded 
hopes. Our fate is inevitable ; we must soon appear at 
the bar of God ; let us make such preparations as are yet 
in our power." 

" Oh," said he, " I cannot die ; I am unfit to die ! If 
I had a short time to prepare ! Death ! oh, how awful !" 

At this moment, Ensign Ronan was fighting at a little 
distance with a tall and portly Indian ; the former, mor- 
tally wounded, was nearly down, and struggling desperately 
upon one knee. Mrs. Helm, pointing her finger, and di- 
recting the attention of Doctor Voorhes thither, observed, 
"Look," said she, "at that young man; he dies like a 
soldier." 

" Yes," said Doctor Voorhes, " but he has no terrors of 
the future ; he is an unbeliever." 

A young savage immediately raised his tomahawk to 
strike Mrs. Helm. She sprang instantly aside, and the 
blow intended for her head fell upon her shoulder ; she 
thereupon seized him around his neck, and while exerting 
all her efforts to get possession of his scalping-knife, was 
seized by another Indian and dragged forcibly from his 




THE MASSACRE, 



THE MASSACRE OF CHICAGO, 



205 



grasp. The latter bore her, struggling and resisting, to- 
ward the lake. Notwithstanding, however, the rapidity 
with which she was hurried along, she recognized, as she 
passed, the remains of the unfortunate surgeon stretched 
lifeless on the prairie. She was plunged immediately into 
the water and held there, notwithstanding her resistance, 
with a forcible hand. She shortly, however, perceived that 
the intention of her captor was not to drown her, as he held 
her in a position to keep her head above the water. Thus 
reassured, she looked at him attentively, and, in spite of 
his disguise, recognized the " white man's friend." It was 
Black Partridge. 

When the firing had ceased, her preserver bore her from 
the water and conducted her up the sand-bank. It was a 
beautiful day in August. The heat, however, of the sun 
was oppressive ; and, walking through the sand, exposed 
to its burning rays, in her drenched condition — weary, and 
exhausted by efforts beyond her strength — anxious beyond 
measure to learn the fate of her friends, and alarmed for 
her own, her situation was one of agony. 

The troops having fought with desperation till two-thirds 
of their number were slain, the remainder twenty-seven in 
all, borne down by an overwhelming force, and exhausted 
by efforts hitherto unequalled, at length surrendered. They 
stipulated, however, for their own safety and for the safety 
of their remaining women and children. The wounded 
prisoners, however, in the hurry of the moment, were un- 
fortunately omitted, or rather not particularly mentioned 
and were therefore regarded by the Indians as having been 
excluded. 



206 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



One of the soldiers' wives, having frequently been told 
that prisoners taken by the Indians were subjected to tor- 
tures worse than death, had from the first expressed a reso- 
lution never to be taken ; and when a party of savages 
approached to make her their prisoner, she fought with 
desperation ; and, though assured of kind treatment and 
protection, refused to surrender, and was literally cut in 
pieces and her mangled remains left on the field. 

After the surrender, one of the baggage wagons, con- 
taining twelve children, was assailed by a single savage 
and the whole number were massacred. All, without dis- 
tinction of age or sex, fell at once beneath his murderous 
tomahawk. 

Captain Wells, who had as yet escaped unharmed, saw 
from a distance the whole of this murderous scene ; and 
being apprized of the stipulation, and seeing it thus violated, 
exclaimed aloud, so as to be heard by the Pottawatomies 
around him, whose prisoner he then was, " If this be your 
game, I will kill too !" and turning his horse's head, in- 
stantly started for the Pottawatomie camp, where the 
squaws and Indian children had been left ere the battle 
began. He had no sooner started, than several Indians 
followed in his rear and discharged their rifles at him as 
he galloped across the prairie. He laid himself flat on the 
neck of his horse, and was apparently out of their reach, 
when the ball of one of his pursuers took effect, killing his 
horse and wounding him severely. He was again a pri- 
soner ; as the savages came up, Winnemeg and Wa-ban-see, 
two of their number, and both his friends, used all their 
endeavors in order to save him ; they had disengaged him 



WINNIMEG, OR THE CATFISH. 



THE MASSACRE OP CHICAGO. 



209 



already from his horse, and were supporting him along, 
when Pee-so-tum, a Pottawatomie Indian, drawing hi3 
scalping-knife, stabbed him in the back, and thus inflicted 
a mortal wound. After struggling for a moment he fell, 
and breathed his last in the arms of his friends, a victim 
for those he had sought to save — a sacrifice to his own rash 
intentions. 

The battle having ended, and the prisoners being se- 
cured, the latter were conducted to the Pottawatomie camp 
near the fort. Here the wife of TTau-bee-nee-mah, an Il- 
linois chief, perceiving the exhausted condition of Mrs. 
Helm, took a kettle, and dipping up some water from the 
stream which flowed sluggishly by them, threw into it some 
maple sugar, and, stirring it up with her hand, gave her 
to drink. "It was," says Mrs. Helm, "the most delicious 
draught I had ever taken, and her kindness of manner, 
<imid so much atrocity, touched my heart." Her attention, 
however, was soon directed to other objects. The fort, 
after the troops had marched out, became a scene of plunder. 
The cattle were shot down as they ran at large, and lay 
dead, or were dying around her. It called up afresh a 
remark of Ensign Ronan's, made before; " Such," said 
he, " is to be our fate — to be shot down like brutes." 

The wounded prisoners, we have already remarked, were 
not included in the stipulation made on the battle-field, as 
the Indians understood it. On reaching, therefore, the 
Pottawatomie camp, a scene followed which beggars de- 
scription. A wounded soldier, lying on the ground, was 
violently assaulted by an old squaw, infuriated by the loss 
of friends or excited bv the murderous scenes around her — 

14 



210 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



who, seizing a pitchfork, attacked the wretched victim, no^ 
helpless, and exposed to the burning rays of the sun, his 
wounds already aggravated by its heat, and he writhing 
in torture. During the succeeding night, five other wounded 
prisoners were tomahawked. 

Those unwounded remained in the wigwams of their 
cajflprs. The work of plunder being now completed, the 
fort next day was set on fire. A fair and equal distribu- 
tion of all the finery belonging to the garrison had appa- 
rently been made, and shawls and ribands and feathers 
were scattered about the camp in great profusion. 

After suffering many hardships, Mrs. Helm, Mrs. Heald, 
and the surviving male prisoners were ransomed and sent 
back to their friends. A few of them, however, were not 
set at liberty until after the battle of the Thames. 



In August, 1786, Mr. Francis Downing, then a lad, 
was living in a fort, where subsequently some iron works 
were erected by Mr. Jacob Myers, which are now known 
by the name of Slate Creek works. About the 16th, a 
young man belonging to the fort, called upon Downing, 
and requested his assistance in hunting for a horse which 
had strayed away on the preceding evening. Downing 
readily complied, and the two friends traversed the woods 
in every direction, until at length, towards evening, they 
found themselves in a wild valley, at a distance of six or 
seven miles from the fort. Here Downing became alarmed 
and repeatedly assured his elder companion, (whose name 

(211) 



212 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



•was Yates,) that he heard sticks cracking behind them, 
and was confident that Indians were dogging them. Yates, 
being an experienced hunter, and from habit grown indif- 
ferent to the dangers of the woods, diverted himself freely 
at the expense of his young companion, often inquiring, 
at what price he rated his scalp, and offering to ensure it 
for sixpence. Downing, however, was not so easily satisfied. 
He observed, that in whatever direction they turned, the 
same ominous sounds continued to haunt them, and as 
Yates still treated his fears with the most perfect indiffe- 
rence, he determined to take his measures upon his own 
responsibility. Gradually slackening his pace, he permitted 
Yates to advance twenty or thirty steps in front of him, 
and immediately after descending a gentle hill, he suddenly 
sprung aside and hid himself in a thick cluster of whortle- 
berry bushes. Yates, who at that time was performing 
some woodland ditty to the full extent of his lungs, was 
too much pleased with his own voice, to attend either to 
Downing or the Indians, and was quickly out of sight. 
Scarcely had he disappeared, when Downing, to his un- 
speakable terror, beheld two savages put aside the stalks 
of a canebrake, and looked out cautiously in the direction 
which Yates had taken. Fearful that they had seen him 
step aside, he determined to fire upon them, and trust to 
his heels for safety, but so unsteady was his hand, that in 
raising his gun to his shoulder, she went off before he had 
taken aim. He lost no time in following her example, and 
after having run fifty yards, he met Yates, who, alarmed 
at the report, was hastily retracing his steps. It was not 
necessary to inquire what was the matter. The enemy 



DOWNING ALARMED AT THE NOISE OF THE INDIANS. 



THE TWO FRIENDS. 



215 



were in full view, pressing forward with great rapidity, and 
" devil take the hindmost," was the order of the day. Yates 
would not outstrip Downing, but ran by his side, although 
in so doing, he risked both of their lives. The Indians 
were well acquainted with the country, and soon took a 
path that diverged from the one which the whites followed, 
at one point and rejoined it at another, bearing the same 
relation to it that the string does to the bow. The two 
paths were at no point distant from each other more than 
one hundred yards, so that Yates and Downing could easily 
see the enemy gaining rapidly upon them. They reached 
the point of re-union first, however, and quickly came to 
a deep gully which it was necessary to recross, or retrace 
their steps. Yates cleared it without difficulty, but Downing 
being, much exhausted, fell short, falling with his breast 
against the opposite brink, rebounded with violence, and 
fell at full length on the bottom. The Indians crossed the 
ditch a few yards below him, and, eager for the capture 
of Yates, continued the pursuit, without appearing to notice 
Downing. The latter who at first had given himself up 
for lost, quickly recovered his strength, and began to walk 
slowly along the ditch, fearing to leave it lest the enemy 
should see him. As he advanced, however, the ditch be- 
came more shallow, until at length it ceased to protect him 
at all. Looking around cautiously, he saw one of the In- 
dians returning apparently in quest of him. Unfortunately, 
he had neglected to reload his gun, while in the ditch, and 
as the Indian instantly advanced upon him, he had no re- 
source but flight. Throwing away his gun, which was now 
useless, he plied his legs manfully, in ascending a long 



216 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



ridge which stretched before him, but the Indian gained 
upon him so rapidly, that he lost all hope of escape. Coming 
at length to a large poplar which had been blown up by 
the roots, he ran along the body of the tree upon one side 
while the Indian followed it upon the other, doubtless ex- 
pecting to intercept him at the root. It happened that a 
large she bear was sucking her cubs in a bed which she had 
made at the root of the tree, and as the Indian reached 
that point, she instantly sprung upon him, and a prodigi- 
ous uproar took place. The Indian yelled, and stabbed 
with his knife, the bear growled and saluted him with one 
of her most endearing " hugs ;" — while Downing, fervently 
wishing her success, ran off through the woods, without 
waiting to see the event of the struggle. Downing reached 
the fort in safety, and found Yates reposing after a hot 
chase, having eluded his pursuers, and gained the fort two 
hours before him. On the next morning, they collected a 
party and returned to the poplar tree, but no traces either 
of the Indian or bear were to be found. They both pro- 
bably escaped with their lives, although not without injury, 




Segetfioi) of 3 pvm 3Mi|Ife tyty, ffoty 
3 p^flj of 

In the year 1T87 ? the following incident occurred m 
Bourbon county Kentucky. One morning, about sun rise, 
a young man of wild and savage appearance, suddenly arose 

(219) 



220 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



from a cluster of bushes in front of a cabin, and hailed the 
house in a barbarous dialect, which seemed neither exactly 
Indian nor English, but a collection of shreds and patches 
from which the graces of both were carefully excluded. 
His skin had evidently once been white — although now 
grievously tanned by constant exposure to the weather. 
His dress in every respect was that of an Indian, as were 
his gestures, tones and equipments, and his age could not 
be supposed to exceed twenty year3. He talked volubly, 
but uncouthly, placed his hand upon his breast, gestured 
vehemently, and seemed very earnestly bent upon commu- 
nicating something. He was invited to enter the cabin, 
and the neighbors quickly collected around him. He ap- 
peared involuntarily to shrink from contact with them — 
his eyes rolled rapidly around with a distrustful expression 
from one to the other, and his whole manner was that of 
a wild animal, just caught, and shrinking from the touch 
of its captors. — As several present understood the Indian 
tongue, they at length gathered the following circumstances 
as accurately as they could be translated, out of a language 
which seemed to be an " omnium gatherum" of all that was 
mongrel, uncouth and barbarous. He said that he had 
been taken by the Indians, when a child, but could neither 
recollect his name, nor the country of his birth. — That he 
had been adopted by an Indian warrior, who brought him 
up with his other sons, without making the slightest dif- 
ference between them, and that under his father's roof, he 
had lived happily until within the last month. A few weeks 
before that time, his father, accompanied by himself and 
a younger brother, had hunted for some time upon the 



DESERTION OF A YOUNG WHITE MAN FROM INDIANS. 223 



waters of the Miami, about forty miles from the spot where 
Cincinnati now stands, and after all their meat, skins, &c, 
had been properly secured, the old man determined to 
gratify his children by taking them upon a war expedition 
to Kentucky. They accordingly built a bark canoe, in 
which they crossed the Ohio, near the mouth of Licking, 
and having buried it, so as to secure it from the action of 
the sun, they advanced into the country and encamped at 
the distance of fifteen miles from the river. Hero their 
father was alarmed by hearing an owl cry in a peculiar 
tone, which he declared boded death or captivity to them- 
selves, if they continued their expedition — and announced 
his intention of returning without delay to the river. Both 
of his sons vehemently opposed this resolution, and at 
length prevailed upon the old man to disregard the owl's 
warning, and conduct them, as he had promised, against 
the frontiers of Kentucky. The party then composed 
themselves to sleep, but were quickly awakened by the 
father, who had again been warned in a dream that death 
awaited them in Kentucky, and again besought his children 
to release him from his promise and lose no time in re- 
turning home. Again they prevailed upon him to disre- 
gard the warning, and persevere in the march. He con- 
sented to gratify them, but declared he would not remain 
a moment longer in the camp which they now occupied, 
and accordingly they left it immediately, and marched on- 
through the night, directing their course towards Bourbon 
county. In the evening they approached a house, that 
which he hailed and in which he was now speaking. Sud- 
denly the desire of rejoining his people occupied his mind 



224 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



so strongly as to exclude every other idea, and seizing the 
first favorable opportunity, he had concealed himself in 
the bushes, and neglected to reply to all the signals which 
had been concerted for the purpose of collecting their party 
when scattered. This account appeared so extraordinary, 
and the young man's appearance was so wild and suspicious, 
that many of the neighbors suspected him of treachery, and 
thought that he should be arrested as a spy. Others op- 
posed this resolution and gave full credit to his narrative. 
In order to satisfy themselves, however, they insisted upon 
his immediately conducting them to the spot where the 
canoe had been baried. To this the young man objected 
most vehemently, declaring that although he had deserted 
his father and brother, yet he would not betray them. 
These feelings were too delicate to meet with much sym- 
pathy from the rude borderers who surrounded him, and 
he was given to understand that nothing short of conducting 
them to the point of embarkation, would be accepted as an 
evidence of his sincerity. — With obvious reluctance he at 
length complied. From twenty to thirty men were quickly 
assembled, mounted upon good horses, and under the 
guidance of the deserter, they moved rapidly towards the 
mouth of Licking. On the road the young man informed 
them that he would first conduct them to the spot, where 
they had encamped when the scream of the owl alarmed 
his father, and where an iron kettle had been concealed in 
a hollow tree. He was probably induced to do this from 
the hope of delaying the pursuit so long as to afford his 
friends an opportunity of crossing the river in safety. But 



DESERTION OF A YOUNG WHITE MAN FROM INDIANS. 225 



if such was his intention, no measure could have been more 
unfortunate. 

The whites approached the encampment in deep silence, 
and quickly perceived two Indians, an old man and a boy, 
seated by the fire and busily engaged in cooking some 
venison. — The deserter became much agitated at the sight 
of them, and so earnestly implored his countrymen not to 
kill them, that it was agreed to surround the encampment, 
and endeavor to secure them as prisoners. This was ac- 
cordingly attempted, but so desperate was the resistance 
of the Indians, and so determined were their efforts to es- 
cape, that the whites were compelled to fire upon them, 
and the old man fell mortally wounded, while the boy, by 
an incredible display of address and activity, was enabled 
to escape. The deserter beheld his father fall, and throwing 
himself from his horse, he ran up to the spot where the 
old man lay bleeding, but still sensible, and falling upon 
his body, besought his forgiveness for being the unwilling 
cause of his death, and wept bitterly. His father evidently 
recognized him, and gave him his hand, but almost in- 
stantly afterwards expired. The white men now called 
upon him to conduct them at a gallop to the spot where 
the canoe was buried, expecting to reach it before the In- 
dian boy and intercept him. The deserter in vain implored 
them to compassionate his feelings. He urged that he had 
already sufficiently demonstrated the truth of his former 
assertions, at the expense of his father's life, and earnestly 
entreated them to permit his younger brother to escape. 
His companions, however, were inexorable. Nothing but 
the blood of the young Indian would satisfy them, and the 

15 



226 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



deserter was again compelled to act in the capacity of a 
guide. 

Within two hours they reached the designated spot. 
The canoe was still there, and no track could be seen upon 
the sand, so that it was evident that their victim had not 
yet arrived. Hastily dismounting, they tied their horses 
and concealed themselves within close rifle shot of the 
canoe. Within ten minutes after their arrival the Indian 
appeared in sight, walking swiftly towards them. He went 
straight to the spot where the canoe had been buried, and 
was in the act of digging it up, when he received a dozen 
balls through his body, and leaping high into the air fell 
dead upon the sand. He was scalped and buried where 
he fell, without having seen his brother, and probably 
without having known the treachery by which he and his 
father had lost their lives. The deserter remained but a 
short time in Bourbon, and never regained his tranquillity 
of mind. He shortly afterwards disappeared, but whether 
to seek his relations in Virginia or Pennsylvania, or whether 
disgusted by the ferocity of the whites, he returned to the 
Indians, has never yet been known. He was never heasd 
of afterwards. 



In 1779, a Mr. Morgan, of Ricket's Fort, West Vir- 
ginia, was surprised in the woods by two Indians, who 
immediately gave chase. Being old and somewhat infirm, 
he faltered in the race, and was obliged to take refuge 
behind a tree ; the Indians did the same, but one of them 
exposing his body, was shot by Morgan, and, after falling, 
stabbed himself. Morgan again fled ; but his surviving 
antagonist gained rapidly upon him, and at length raised 
his gun to fire. Morgan adroitly stepped aside, and the 
ball passed him. Then each rushed to closer combat. 



230 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



Morgan, while striking with his gun, received the Indian's 
tomahawk, which cut off a finger, and knocked the gun 
from his grasp. Being an expert wrestler, he closed, and 
threw his antagonist ; but he was speedily overturned, 
when the Indian, uttering the customary yell of triumph, 
began feeling for his knife. Its hilt was entangled in a 
woman's apron, which the savage had tied round his 
waist ; and this apparent trivial circumstance saved the 
prostrate hunter. During the search, Morgan had seized 
his antagonist's fingers with his teeth, a position in which 
he used all becoming exertions to keep them. Meanwhile 
he assisted in the search for the knife. The Indian at 
length seized it, but so far towards the blade, that Mor- 
gan caught hold of the upper portion of the handle, and 
drew it * through his adversary's hand, inflicting a deep 
wound. Both sprang erect, Morgan still holding on to 
the Indian's fingers, and having his body within his grasp. 
He had therefore all the advantage, and while his foe was 
struggling to disengage himself, he plunged the knife to 
the hilt in his body. The daring hunter returned to the 
fort in triumph. 



COLONEL ZEBTJLON BUTLER. 



fjjfcs^tte of Mffiotytyy. 

The following account of the battle and massacre 13 
taken from an interesting history of Wyoming, written by 
Isaac Chapman, Esq., late of "Wilkesbarre. Judge Chap- 
man lived upon the spot, and could hardly fail to have 
collected ample materials, and to give a correct narrative 
of the events which transpired there during the Revolu- 
tionary war. The inhabitants ^had collected in Forty 
Fort — the principal fort in the valley. The number of 
men was three hundred and sixty-eight. 

(233) 



234 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



On the morning of the 3d of July, 1778, the officers 
of the garrison of Forty Fort held a council to determine 
on the propriety of marching from the fort, and attacking 
the enemy wherever found. The debates in this council 
of war are said to have been conducted with much warmth 
and animation. The ultimate determination was one on 
which depended the lives of the garrison and safety of 
the settlement. On one side it wa3 contended that their 
enemies were daily increasing in numbers ; that they would 
plunder the settlement of all kinds of property, and would 
accumulate the means of carrying on the war, while they 
themselves would become weaker ; that the harvest would 
soon be ripe, and would be gathered or destroyed by their 
enemies, and all their means of sustenance during the 
succeeding winter would fail ; that probably all their 
messengers were killed, and as there had been more than 
sufficient time, and no assistance arrived, they would pro- 
bably receive none, and consequently now was the proper 
time to make an attack. 

On the other side it was argued, that probably some or 
all the messengers may have arrived at head-quarters, 
but that the absence of the commander-in-chief may have 
produced delay ; that one or two weeks more may bring 
the desired assistance, and that to attack the enemy, su- 
perior as they were in number, out of the limits of their 
own fort, would produce almost certain destruction to the 
settlements and themselves, and captivity, and slavery, 
perhaps torture, to their wives and children. 

While these debates were progressing, five men belong- 
ing to Wyoming, but who at that time held commissions 



MASSACRE OF WYOMING-. 



237 



in the continental army, arrived at the fort ; they nad 
received information that a force from Niagara had 
marched to destroy the settlements on the Susquehanna, 
and being unable to bring with them any reinforcement, 
they resigned their appointments, and hastened immedi- 
ately to the protection of their families. They had heard 
nothing of the messengers, neither could they give any 
certain information as to the probability of relief. 

The prospect of receiving assistance became now ex- 
tremely uncertain. The advocates for the attack prevailed 
in the council, and at dawn of day, on the morning of 
the 3d of July, the garrison left the fort, and began their 
march up the river, under the command of Colonel Zebulon 
Butler. Having proceeded about two miles, the troops 
halted for the purpose of detaching a reconnoitering party, 
to ascertain the situation of the enemy. 

The scout found the enemy in possession of Fort Win- 
termoot, and occupying huts immediately around it, carous- 
ing in supposed security ; but on their return to the ad- 
vancing column, they met two strolling Indians, by whom 
they were fired upon, and upon whom they immediately 
returned the fire without effect. The settlers hastened 
their march for the attack, but the Indians had given the 
alarm, and the advancing troops found the enemy already 
formed in order of battle a small distance from their fort, 
with their right flank covered by a swamp, and their left 
resting upon the bank of a river. The settlers immedi- 
atelv displayed their column and formed in corresponding 
order, but as the enemy was much superior in numbers, 
their line was much more extensive. Pine woods and 



238 



HEROES OP THE WEST. 



bushes covered the battle-ground, in consequence of 
which, the movements of the troops could not be so quickly 
discovered, nor so well ascertained. Colonel Zebulon 
Butler had command of the right, and was opposed by 
Colonel John Butler at the head of the British troops on 
the left, Colonel Xathan Denison commanded the left, 
opposed by Brant at the head of his Indians on the enemy's 
right. The battle commenced at about forty rods distant, 
and continued about fifteen minutes through the woods 
and brush without much execution. At this time, Brant 
with his Indians having penetrated the swamp, turned 
the left flank of the settler's line, and with a terrible war- 
whoop and savage yell, made a desperate charge upon the 
troops composing that wing, which fell very fast, and 
were immediately cut to pieces with the tomahawk. Colo- 
nel Denison having ascertained that the savages were 
gaining the rear of the left, gave orders for that wing to 
fall bade. At the same time, Colonel John Butler, find- 
ing that the line of settlers did not extend so far towards 
the river as his own. doubled that end of his line which 
was protected by a thick growth of brushwood, and hav- 
ing brought a party of his British regulars to act in 
column upon that wing, threw Colonel Zebulon Butler's 
into some confusion. The orders of Colonel Denison for 
his troops to fall back, having been understood by many 
4 to mean a retreat, the troops began to retire in much dis- 
order. The savages considered this a flight, and com- 
mencing a most hideous yell, rushed forward with their 
rifles and tomahawks, and cut the retiring line to pieces. 
In this situation it was found impossible to rally and 



MASSACRE OF WYOMING. 



239 



form the troops, and the rout became general throughout 
the line. 

The settlers fled in every direction, and were instantly 
fellowed by the savages, who killed or took prisoners who- 
ever came within their reach. Some succeeded in reaching 
the river, and escaped by swimming across ; others fled 
to the mountains, and the savages, too much occupied 
with plunder, gave up the pursuit. 

When the first intelligence was received in the village 
of Wilkesbafre that the battle was lost, the women fled 
with their children to the mountains on their way to the 
settlements on the Delaware, where many of them at length 
arrived after suffering extreme hardships. Many of the 
men who escaped the battle, together with their women 
and children, who were unable to travel on foot, took re- 
fuge in Wyoming fort, and on the following day (July 4th,) 
Butler and Brant, at the head of their combined forces, 
appeared before the fort, and demanded its surrender. 
The garrison being without any efficient means of de- 
fence, surrendered the fort on articles of capitulation, by 
which the settlers, upon giving up their fortifications, pri- 
soners, and military stores, were to remain in the country 
unmolested, provided they did not again take up arms. 

In this battle about three hundred of the settlers were 
killed or missing, from a great part of whom no intel- 
ligence was ever afterward received. 

The conditions of the capitulation were entirely disre- 
garded by the British and savage forces, and after the 
fort was delivered up, all kinds of barbarities were com- 
mitted by them. The village of Wilkesbarre, consisting 



240 HEROES OF THE WEST. 

of twenty-three houses, was burnt ; men^ and their wives 
were separated from each other, and carried into captivity : 
their property was plundered, and the settlement laid 
waste. The remainder of the inhabitants were driven 
from the valley, and compelled to proceed on foot sixty 
miles through the great swamp, almost without food or 
clothing. A number perished in the journey, principally 
women and children ; some died of their wounds ; others 
wandered from the path in search of food, and were lost, 
and those who survived called the wilderness through 
which they had passed, "the shades of death !" a name 
which it has since retained. 



The following incidents are taken from a letter addressed 
by Captain Nathaniel Hart, of Woodford county, Kentucky, 
to Governor Morehead : 

Dear Sir. — Connected with your address delivered at 
the celebration of the first settlement of Kentucky, at 
Boonesborough, the circumstances attending the escape 
and defence of Mrs. Woods, about the year 1784-5, near 
the Crab Orchard, in Lincoln county, may not be without 

(243) 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



interest. I have a distinct recollection of them. Mr. Woods, 
her husband, vras absent from home, and early in the 
morning, being a short distance from her cabin, she dis- 
covered several Indians advancing towards it. She reached 
it before all but one, who was so far ahead of the others, 
that before she could close and fasten the door, he entered. 
Instantly he was seized by a lame negro man of the family, 
and after a short scuffle, they both fell — the negro under- 
neath. But he held the Indian so fast, that he was unable 
to use either his scalping knife or tomahawk, when he called 
upon his young mistress to take the axe from under the 
bed, and dispatch him by a blow upon the head. She im- 
mediately attempted it : but the first attempt was a failure 
She repeated the blow and killed him. The other Indians 
were at the door endeavoring to force it open with their 
tomahawks. The negro rose, and proposed to Mrs. "Woods 
to let in another, and they would soon dispose of the whole 
of them in the same way. The cabin was but a short 
distance from a station, the occupants of which, having 
discovered the perilous situation of the family, fired on the 
Indians, and killed another, when the remainder made their 
escape. 

This incident is not more extaordinary than one that 
happened, in the fall or winter of 1781-2, to some families 
belonging to our own fort at the White Oak Spring. My 
father settled this fort in 1779. It was situated about a 
mile above Boonesborough and in the same bottom of the 
river. It was composed principally of families from York 
county, Pennsylvania — orderly, respectable people, and 
the men good soldiers. But they were unaccustomed to 



HEROIC WOMEN OF THE WEST. 



247 



Indian warfare, and the consequence was, that of some 
ten or twelve men, all were killed but two or three. During 
this period, Peter Duree, the elder, the principal man of 
the connection, determined to settle a new fort between 
Estill's station and the mouth of Muddy Creek, directly 
on the trace between the Cherokee and Shawanese towns. 
Having erected a cabin, his son-in-law, John Bullock and 
his family, and his son Peter Duree, his wife and two 
children, removed to it, taking a pair of hand mill stones 
with them. They remained for two or three days shut up 
in their cabin, but their corn meal being exhausted, they 
were compelled to venture out to cut a hollow tree in order 
to adjust their hand mill. They were attacked by Indians- 
Bullock, after running a short distance, fell. Duree reached 
the cabin, and threw himself upon the bed. Mrs. Bullock 
ran to the door to ascertain the fate of her husband — re- 
ceived a shot in the breast, and fell across the door sill. 
Mrs. Duree, not knowing whether her husband had been 
shot or had fainted, caught her by the feet, pulled her 
into the house and barred the door. She grasped a rifle 
and told her husband, she would help him to fight. He 
replied that he had been wounded and was dying. She 
then presented the gun through several port holes in quick 
succession — then calmly sat by her husband and closed 
his eyes in death. You would conclude that the scene 
ought to end here — but after waiting several hours, and 
seeing nothing more of the Indians, she sallied out in des- 
peration to make her way to the White Oak Spring, with 
her infant in her arms, and a son, three or four years of 
age, following her. Afraid to pursue the trace, she entered 



248 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



the woods, and after running till she was nearly exhausted 
she came at length to the trace. She determined to follow 
it at all hazards, and having advanced a few miles further, 
she met the elder Mr. Duree, with his wife, and youngest son, 
with their baggage, on their way to the new station. The 
melancholy tidings induced them, of course, to return. 
They led their horses into an adjoining canebrake, unloaded 
them, and regained the White Oak Spring fort before day- 
light. 

It is impossible at this day to make a just impression of 
the sufferings of the pioneers about the period spoken of. 
The White Oak Spring fort in 1782, with perhaps one 
hundred souls in it, was reduced in August to three fighting 
white men — and I can say with truth, that for two or three 
weeks, my mother's family never unclothed themselves to 
sleep, nor were all of them, within the time, at their meals 
together, nor was any household business attempted. Food 
was prepared, and placed where those who chose could 
eat. It was the period when Bryant's station was besieged 
and for many days before and after that gloomy event, we 
were in constant expectation of being made prisoners. 
We made application to Colonel Logan for a guard, and 
obtained one, but not until the danger was measurably 
over. It then consisted of two men only. Colonel Logan 
did everything in his power, as county lieutenant, to sus- 
tain the different forts — but it was not a very easy matter 
to order a married man from a fort where his family was 
to defend some other — when his own was in imminent 
danger. 

I went with my mother in January, 1783, to Logan's 



HEROIC WOMEN OF THE WEST. 



249 



Btation, to prove my father's will. He had fallen in the 
preceding July. Twenty armed men were of the party. 
Twenty-three widows were in attendance upon the court, 
to obtain letters of administration on the estates of their 
husbands, who had been killed during the past year. My 
mother went to Colonel Logan's, who received and treated 
her like a sister. 



GEHERAL ST. CLAIR. 

TnE Chippewas are a numerous people inhabiting the 
country north of Lake Superior, and about the source of 
the Mississippi. They are divided into several tribes, 
and are distinguished by the number of blue or black 
lines tattooed on their cheeks and foreheads. 

Travellers have always described them as " the most 
peaceable tribe of Indians known in North America." 
(250) 



INDIAN STRATAGEM FOILED. 



253 



They are not remarkable for their activity as hunters, and 
this no doubt is owing to the ease with which they can 
procure both game and fish. 

In their pursuit of deer, they sometimes drive them 
into the small lakes, and then spear them from their ca- 
noes ; or shoot them with the bow and arrow, after having 
driven them into inclosures constructed for the purpose. 
Snares made of deer sinews, too, are frequently used for 
catching large and small game : and as these occupations 
are not beyond the strength of the old men and boys* 
they take a share in these toils, which among most of the 
tribes are left exclusively to the squaws. 

In person the Chippewas are not remarkable ; they are 
generally robust, their complexion swarthy, their features 
broad, and their hair straight and black, which is the case 
in most of the Indian tribes. But they have not that 
piercing eye, which so generally animates the Indian 
countenance. 

The aspect of the women is more agreeable than that 
of the men ; they wear their hair of a great length, and 
pay much attention to its arrangement, greasing it with 
considerable taste. 

They appear to be more attentive to the comforts of 
dress, and less anxious about its exterior than of their red 
brethren. Deer and fawn skins, dressed with the hair 
on, so skilfully that they are perfectly supple, compose 
their shirt or coat, which is girt round the waist with a 
belt, and reaches half way down the thigh. Their moc- 
casins and leggins are generally sewn together, and the 
latter meet the belt to which they are fastened. A rufi 



254 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



or tippet surrounds the neck, and the skin of the deer 'a 
head is formed into a curious sort of cap. 

A robe of several deer skins sewn together is thrown 
over the whole ; this dress is sometimes worn single, but 
in winter it is always made double, the hair forming both 
the lining and the outside. 

Thus attired, a Chippewa will lay himself down on the 
snow and repose in comfort ; and if in his wanderings 
across the numerous lakes with which his country abounds, 
he should fall short of provisions, he has only to cut a 
hole in the ice, when he seldom fails of taking a black- 
fish, or a bass, which he broils over his little wood fire 
with as much skill as a French cook. 

At the time of the French and Indian wars, the Ame- 
rican army was encamped on the Plains of Chippewa. 
Colonel St. Clair, the commander, was a brave and merito- 
rious officer, but his bravery sometimes amounted to rash- 
ness, and his enemies have accused him of indiscretion. 
In the present instance perhaps he may have merited the 
accusation, for the plain on which he had encamped was 
bordered by a dense forest, from which the Indian scouts 
could easily pick off his sentinels without in the least 
exposing themselves to danger. 

Five nights had passed, and every night the sentinel, 
who stood at a lonely out-post in the vicinity of the forest, 
had been shot ; and these repeated disasters struck such 
dread among the remaining soldiers, that no one would 
come forward to offer to take the post, and the com- 
mander, knowing it was only throwing men's lives away, 
let it stand for a few nights unoccupied. 



INDIAN STRATAGEM FOILED. 257 

At length, a rifleman of the Virginian corps, volunteered 
his services for this dangerous duty ; he laughed at the 
fears of his companions, and told them he meant to re- 
turn safe and drink his commander's health in the morn- 
ing. The guard marched up soon after, and he shouldered 
his rifle and fell. He arrived at the place "which had been 
so fatal to his comrades, and bidding his fellow soldiers 
"good night," assumed the duties of his post. The night 
was dark, thick clouds overspread the firmament, and 
hardly a star could be seen by the sentinel as he paced 
his lonely walk. All was silent except the gradually re- 
treating footsteps of the guard; he marched onwards, 
then stopped and listened till he thought he heard the 
joyful sound of "All's well" — then all was still, and he 
sat down on a fallen tree and began to muse." Presently 
a low rustling among the bushes caught his ear ; he gazed 
intently towards the spot whence the sound seemed to 
proceed, but he could see nothing save the impenetrable 
gloom of the forest. The sound grew nearer, and a well- 
known grunt informed him of the approach of a bear. 
The animal passed the soldier slowly, and then quietly 
sought the thicket to the left. At this moment the moon 
shone out bright through the parting clouds, and the wary 
soldier perceived the ornamented moccasin of a savage on 
what an instant before he believed to be a bear ! He 
could have shot him in a moment, but he knew not how 
many other animals might be at hand ; he therefore re- 
frained, and leaving perfect knowledge cf Indian subtil ty, 
lie quickly took off his hat and coat, hung them on a 
branch of a fallen tree, grasped his rifle, and silently 

17 



258 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



crept towards the thicket. He had barely reached it, 
when an arrow, whizzing past his head, told him of the 
danger he had so narrowly escaped. 

He looked carefully round him, and on a little spot of 
cleared land he counted twelve Indians, some sitting, some 
lying full length on the thickly strewn leaves of the forest. 
Believing that they had already shot the sentinel, and little 
thinking there was any one within hearing, they were 
quite off their guard, and conversed aloud about their 
plans for the morrow. 

It appeared that a council of twelve chiefs was now 
held, in which they gravely deliberated on the most effec- 
tual means of annoying the enemy. It was decided that 
the next evening forty of their warriors should be in readi- 
ness at theiiour when the sentinel should be left by his 
comrades, and that when they had retired a few paces, an 
arrow should silence him for ever, and they would then 
rush on and massacre the guard. 

This being concluded, they rose, and drawing the nu- 
merous folds of their ample robes closer round them, they 
marched off in Indian file through the gloomy forest, seeking 
some more distant spot, where the smoke of their nightly 
fire would not be observed by the white men. 

The sentinel rose from his hiding-place and returned to 
his post, and taking down his hat, found that an arrow 
had passed clean through it. He then wrapt himself in* 
his watch-coat, and returned immediately to the camp ; 
and without any delay demanded to speak to the commander, 
saying that he had something important to communicate. 

He was admitted, and when he had told all that he had 




GENERAL MORGAN. 



INDIA2T STRATAGEM FOILED. 



261 



seen and heard, the Colonel bestowed on him the commis- 
sion of lieutenant of the Virginia corps, which had been 
made vacant by the death of one of his comrades a few 
nights back, and ordered him to be ready with a picket 
guard, to march an hour earlier than usual to the fatal 
out-post, there to place a hat and coat on the branches, and 
then lie in ambush for the intruders. 

The following evening, according to the orders given by 
Colonel St. Clair, a detachment of forty riflemen, with 
Lieutenant Morgan at their head, marched from the camp 
at half past seven in the evening towards the appointed 
spot, and having arranged the hat and coat so as to have 
the appearance of a soldier standing on guard, they stole 
silently away and hid themselves among the bushes. 

Here they lay for almost an hour before any signs of 
approaching Indians were heard. The night was cold 
and still, and the rising moon shone forth in all her beauty. 
The men were becoming impatient of their uncomfortable 
situation, for their clothes were not so well adapted to a 
bed of snow as the deer-skin robes of the hardy Chippewas. 

" Silence !" whispered Lieutenant Morgan — " I hear the 
rustling of the leaves." 

Presently a bear of the same description as had been 
seen the night before, passed near the ambush ; it crept 
to the edge of the plain — reconnoitred — saw the sentinel 
at his post — retired towards the forest a few paces, and 
then, suddenly rising on his feet, let fly an arrow which 
brought the sham sentinel to the ground. So impatient 
were the Virginians to avenge the death of their comrades 
that they could scarcely wait till the lieutenant gave the 



262 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



word of command to fire — then they rose in a body, and 
before the Chippewas had time to draw their arrows or 
seize their tomahawks, more than half their number lay 
dead upon the plain. The rest fled to the forest, but the 
riflemen fired again, and killed or wounded several more 
of the enemy. They then returned in triumph to relate 
their exploits in the camp. 

Ten chiefs fell that night, and their fall was, undoubtedly, 
one principal cause of the French and Indian wars with the 
English. 

Lieutenant Morgan rose to be a captain, and at the ter- 
mination of the war returned home, and lived on his own 
farm till the breaking out of the American war. And 
then, at the head of a corps of Virginia rifleman, appeared 
our hero, the brave and gallant Colonel Morgan, better 
known by the title of general, which he soon acquired by 
his courage and ability. 




BLACKBIRD. 



Among- the first tribes of the Great Oregon Territory, 
which established friendly intercourse with the United 
States traders, were the Ornahas. The boast of these Indians 
vras a chief named Blackbird, who was a steadfast friend 
of the white men and the terror of the neighboring hostile 
tribes. Such were his skill, courage, and success in war, 
that friends and foes regarded him as enchanted. He de- 
lighted in trials of strength or agility, in which he always 
came off victorious. In addition to these qualities, he pos- 
sessed a secret which rendered him more than human in 
the eyes of his barbarous followers. This was an acquaint- 
ance with the properties of arsenic, which he had obtained 
from a white trader. "Whenever he was displeased with an 

(265) 



266 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



Indian, he prophesied his death before a certain day, and 
the sure accomplishment of the prophecy rendered Black- 
bird an object of terror and reverence. 

On one occasion, the Poncas made an incursion into 
Blackbird's territory, and carried away a number of women 
and horses. He immediately collected his warriors and 
pursued them. The Poncas sheltered themselves behind 
a rude embankment, but their persevering enemy, gaining 
a good position, poured upon them a well-directed fire, 
which did fearful execution. The Ponca chief dispatched 
a herald, with the calumet, but he was immediately shot ; 
a second herald experienced the same treatment. The 
chieftain's daughter, a young maiden of much personal 
beauty, then appeared before the stern foe, dressed with 
exquisite taste, and bearing the calumet. Blackbird's 
heart softened, he accepted the sacred emblem, and con- 
cluded a peace with his enemy. The pledge given and 
received was the beautiful Ponca maiden, as wife to the 
fierce chieftain of Omaha. 

For the first time the heart of Blackbird felt the genial 
influence of love. He loved the young creature who had 
saved her tribe, with all the ardor of untutored nature. 
But he was still a savage, and sometimes ungovernable 
bursts of rage would transport him beyond all bounds of 
affection or decency. In one of these, his beloved wife 
unwittingly offended him. He instantly drew his knife 
and laid her dead with a single blow. The dreadful deed 
calmed him in a moment. For a little while he looked at 
the beautiful corpse in stupid grief, and then, with his head 
wrapped in his robe, he sat down beside it. He ate no 



BLACKBIRD. 



267 



food, spake no word for three days. The remonstrances 
of his people were received with silence, and no one dared 
to uncover his face. At length one of them brought in a 
small child, and placed the foot of the unhappy warrior 
on its neck. Blackbird was moved by the significant appeal 
and throwing aside his robe, he arose and delivered an 
oration. 

The Omaha tribe were greatly thinned by small-pox, 
and to this loathsome disease their great chieftain fell a 
victim. His dying request was bold and fanciful. Near 
the source of the Missouri is a high solitary rock, round 
which the river winds in a nearly circular direction, and 
which commands a view of the adjacent country for many 
miles around. There Blackbird had often sat to watch for 
the canoes of the white traders, and there it was his dying 
request to be buried. He was to be mounted upon his 
horse, completely armed, so as to overlook his lands, and 
watch for the coming boat of the white men. His orders 
were obeyed ; and on that same high promontory, over the 
tomb of the Indian warrior was raised his national banner, 
capped with the scalps which he had taken in battlle. Of 
course the Indians regard the rock with superstitious reve- 
rence, and have their own stories of the scenes which 
occasionally take plaoe on and around it. 




"While encamped on the 24th of April, at a spring near 
the Spanish Trail, we were surprised by the sudden ap- 
pearance amongst us of two Mexicans : a man and a boy. 
The name of the man was Andreas Fuentas, and that of 
the boy, a handsome lad of eleven years old. Pablo Her- 
nandez. With a cavalcade of about thirty horses, they 
had come out from Puebla de los Angelos, near the Pa 
(268) 




KIT. CAKSON. 



A DESPERATE ADVENTURE. 



27i 



cific ; had lost half their animals, stolen by the Indians, 
and now sought my camp for aid. Carson and Godey, 
two of my men, volunteered to pursue them, with the 
Mexican ; and, well mounted, the three set off on the 
trail. In the evening, Fuentas returned, his horse having 
failed ; but Carson and Godey had continued the pursuit. 

In the afternoon of the next day, a war-whoop was 
heard, such as Indians make when returning from a vic- 
torious enterprise ; and soon Carson and Godey appeared 
driving before them a band of horses, recognised by Fu- 
entas to be a part of those they had lost. Two bloody 
scalps, dangling from the end of Godey's gun, announced 
that they had overtaken the Indians as well as the horses. 
They had continued the pursuit alone after Fuentas left 
them, and towards nightfall entered the mountains into 
which the trail led. After sunset, the moon gave light 
until late in the night, when it 1 entered a narrow defile, 
and was difficult to follow. Here they lay from midnight 
till morning. At daylight they resumed the pursuit, and 
at sunrise discovered the horses ; and immediately dis- 
mounting and tying up their own, they crept cautiously 
to a rising ground which intervened, from the crest of 
which they perceived the encampment of four lodges close 
by. They proceeded quietly, and got within thirty or 
forty yards of their object, when a movement among the 
horses discovered them to the Indians. Giving the war 
shout, they instantly charged into the camp, regardless 
of the numbers which the four lodges might contain. The 
Indians received them with a flight of arrows, shot from 
their long bows, one of which passed through Godey's 



272 



HEROES OP THE WEST. 



shirt collar, barely missing the neck. Our men fired their 
rifles upon a steady aim, and rushed in. Two Indians 
were stretched upon the ground, fatally pierced with 
bullets ; the rest fled, except a lad, who was captured. The 
scalps of the fallen were instantly stripped off", but in the 
process, one of them, -who had two balls through his body, 
sprung to his feet, the blood streaming from his skinned 
head, and uttered a hideous howl. The frightful spectacle 
appalled the stout hearts of our men ; but they did what 
humanity required, and quickly terminated the agony of 
the gory savage. They were now masters of the camp, 
which was a pretty little recess in the mountain, with a 
fine spring, and apparently safe from all invasion. Great 
preparation had been made for feasting a large party, for 
it wa^ a very proper place for a rendezvous, and for the 
celebration of such orgies as robbers of the desert would 
delight in. Several of the horses had been killed, skinned, 
and cut up — for the Indians living in the mountains, and 
only coming into the plains to rob and murder, make no 
other use of horses than to eat them. Large earthen 
vessels were on the fire, boiling and stewing the horse 
beef, and several baskets containing fifty or sixty pair of 
moccasins, indicated the presence or expectation of a large 
party. They released the boy who had given strong 
evidence of the stoicism, or something else of the savage 
character, by commencing his breakfast upon a horse's 
head as soon as he found he was not to be killed, but only 
tied as a prisoner. 

Their object accomplished, our men gathered up all the 
surviving horses, fifteen in number, returned upon thei* 




18 



A DESPERATE ADVENTURE. 



275 



trail, and rejoined us at our camp in the afternoon of the 
same day. They had rode about one hundred miles in 
the pursuit and return, and all in about thirty hours. The 
time, place, object and numbers considered, this expedi- 
tion of Carson and Godey may be considered among the 
boldest and most disinterested which the annals of west- 
ern adventure, so full of daring deeds, can present. Two 
men in a savage wilderness, pursue day and night an un- 
known body of Indians into the defiles of an unknown 
mountain — attack them on sight without counting num- 
bers — and defeat them in an instant — and for what ? — to 
punish the robbers of the desert, and revenge the wrongs 
of Mexicans whom they did not know. I repeat it was 
Carson and Godey who did this — the former an American, 
born in Booneslick county, Missouri ; the latter a French- 
man, born in St. Louis — and both trained to western 
enterprise from early life. 



ftdbe^fi^e of Jfoo Seoqfe. 



As early as the year 1790, the block-house and stock* 
ade, above the mouth of the Hockhocking river, was a 
frontier post for the hardy pioneer of that portion cf the 
state from the Hockhocking to the Sciota, and from the 
Ohio river to the northern lakes. Then nature wore her 
undisturbed livery of dark and thick forests, interspersed 
with green and flowery prairies. Then the axe of the 
(276) 



ADVENTURE OF TWO SCOUTS. 



279 



woodman had not been heard in the wilderness, nor tho 
plough of the husbandmen marred the beauty of the green 
prairies. Among the rich and luxuriant valleys, that of 
the Hoekhocking was pre-eminent for nature's richest 
gifts — and the portico of it whereon Lancaster now stands, 
was marked as the most luxuriant and picturesque, and 
became the seat of an Indian village, at a period so early, 
that the "memory of man runneth not parallel thereto. ,, 
On the green sward of the prairie was held many a rude 
gambol of the Indians ; and here, too, was many an as- 
semblage of the warriors of one of the most powerful 
tribes, taking counsel for a "war-path," upon some weak 
or defenceless post. 

Upon one of these stirring occasions, intelligence 
reached the little garrison above the mouth of the Hock- 
hocking, that the Indians were gathering in force some- 
where up the valley, for the purpose of striking a* terrible 
and fatal blow on one of the few and scattered defences 
of the whites. A council was held by the garrison, and 
scouts were sent up the Hoekhocking, in order to ascertain 
the strength of the foe, and the probable point of attack. 
In the month of October, and on one of the balmiest days 
of our Indian summer, two men could have been seen 
emerging out of the thick plumb and hazel bushes skirting 
the prairie, and stealthily climbing the eastern declivity 
of that most remarkable promontory, now known as Mount 
Pleasant, whose western summit gives a commanding view 
to the eye of what is doing on the prairie. This eminence 
was gained by our two adventurers and hardy scouts, and 
from this point they carefully observed the movements 



280 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



taking place on the prairie. Every day brought an acces* 
sion of warriors to those already assembled, and every day 
the scouts witnessed from their eyrie, the horse-racing, 
leaping, running and throwing the deadly tomahawk by 
the warriors. The old sachems looking on with indiffe* 
rence — the squaws, for the most part, engaged in their 
usual drudgeries, and the papooses manifesting all the 
noisy and wayward joy of childhood. The arrival of any 
new party of savages was hailed by the terrible war-whoop, 
which striking the mural face of Mount Pleasant, was driven 
back into the various indentations of the surrounding hills, 
producing reverberation on reverberation, and echo on 
echo, till it seemed as if ten thousand fiends were gathered 
in their orgies. Such yells might well strike terror into 
the bosoms of those unaccustomed to them. To our scouts 
these were but martial music strains which waked their 
watchfulness, and strung their iron frames. From their 
early youth had they been always on the frontier, and 
therefore well practised in all the subtlety, craft, and 
cunning, as well as knowing the ferocity and bloodthirsty 
perseverance of the savage. They were therefore not 
likely to be circumvented by the cunning of their foes ; 
and without a desperate struggle, would not fall victims 
to the scalping-knife. 

On several occasions, small parties of warriors left the 
prairies and ascended the Mount ; at which times the 
scouts would hide in the fissures of the rocks, or lying by 
the side of some long prostrate tree, cover themselves 
with the sear and yellow leaf, and again leave their hid- 
ing places when their uninvited visitors had disappeared. 




A SHAWANESE WARRIOR. 



t 



ADVENTURE OF TWO SCOUTS. 



283 



For food they depended on jerked venison, and cold corn 
bread, with which their knapsacks had been well stored. 
Fire they dared not kindle, and the report of one of their 
rifles would bring upon them the entire force of the In- 
dians. For drink they depended on some rain water, 
which still stood in excavations of the rocks, but in a few 
days this store was exhausted, and M'Clelland and White 
must abandon their enterprise or find a new supply. To 
accomplish this most hazardous affair, M'Clelland being 
the elder, resolved to make the attempt — with his trusty 
rifle in his grasp, and two canteens strung across his 
shoulders, he cautiously descended to the prairie, and 
skirting the hills on the north as much as possible within 
the hazel thickets, he struck a course for the Hockhock- 
ing river. He reached its margin, and turning an abrupt 
point of a hill, he found a beautiful fountain of limpid 
water, now known as the Cold Spring, within a few feet 
of the river. He filled his canteens and returned in 
safety to his watchful companion. It was now determined 
to have a fresh supply of water every day, and this duty 
was to be performed alternately. 

On one of these occasions, after White had filled his 
canteens, he sat a few moments, watching the limpid ele- 
ment, as it came gurgling out of the bosom of the earth — 
the light sound of footsteps caught his practised ear, and 
upon turning round, he saw two squaws within a few feet 
of him ; these upon turning the jet of the hill had thus 
suddenly came upon him. The elder squaw gave one of 
those far-reaching whoops peculiar to the Indians. White 
at once comprehended his perilous situation — for if tha 



284 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



alarm should reach the camp, he and his companion must 
inevitably perish. Self-preservation impelled him to in- 
flict a noiseless death upon the squaws, and in such a 
manner as to leave no trace behind. Ever rapid in 
thought, and prompt in action, he sprang upon his vic- 
tims with a rapidity and power of a panther, and grasp- 
ing the throat of each, with one bound he sprang into the 
river, and rapidly thrust the head of the elder woman 
under the water, and making stronger efforts to submerge 
the younger, who, however, powerfully resisted. During 
the short struggle, the younger female addressed him in 
his own language, though almost in inarticulate sounds. 
Releasing his hold, she informed him, that, ten years be- 
fore, she had been made a prisoner, on Grave Creek flats, 
and that the Indians, in her presence, butchered her mo- 
ther and two sisters ; and that an only brother had been 
captured with her, who succeeded on the second night in 
making his escape; but what had become of him she 
knew not. 

During the narrative, White, unobserved by the girl, 
had let go his grasp on the elder squaw, whose body soon 
floated where it would not, probably soon be found. He 
now directed the girl hastily to follow him, and with his 
usual energy and speed, pushed for the Mount. They had 
scarcely gone two hundred yards from the spring, before 
the alarm cry was heard some quarter of a mile down the 
stream. It was supposed that some warriors returning 
from a hunt, struck the Hockhocking just as the body of 
the drowned squaw floated past. White and the girl suc- 
ceeded in reaching the Mount, where M'Clelland had been 



A SHAWANESE CHIEF. 



ADVENTURE OP TWO SCOUTS, 



28? 



no indifferent spectator to the sudden commotion among 
the Indians, as the prairie warriors were seen to strike off 
in every direction, and before White and the girl had ar- 
rived, a party of some twenty warriors had already gained 
the eastern acclivity of the Mount, and were cautiously 
ascending, carefully keeping under cover. Soon the two 
scouts saw the swarthy faces of the foe, as they glided from 
tree to tree, and rock to rock, until the whole base of the 
Mount was surrounded, and all hopes of escape were cut off. 

In this peril nothing was left, other than to sell their 
lives as dearly as possible ; this they resolved to do, and 
advised the girl to escape to the Indians, and tell them 
she had been a captive to the scouts. 

She said, "No ! Death, and that in presence of my 
people, is to me a thousand times sweeter than captivity — 
furnish me with a rifle, and I will show you that I can 
fight as well as die. This spot I leave not ! here my 
bones shall lie bleaching with yours ! and should either 
of you escape, you will carry the tidings of my death to 
my remaining relatives." 

Kemonstrance proved fruitless ; the two scouts ma- 
tured their plans for a vigorous defence — opposing 
craft to craft, expedient to expedient, and an unerring 
fire of the deadly rifle. The attack now commenced in 
front, where, from the narrow backbone of the Mount, 
the savages had to advance in single file, but where they 
could avail themselves of the rock and trees. In advanc- 
ing the warrior must be momentarily exposed, and two 
bare inches of his swarthy form was target enough for 
the unerring rifle of the scouts. After bravely maintain- 



288 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



ing the fight in front, and keeping the enemy in check, 
they discovered a new danger threatening them. The 
wary foe now made every preparation to attack them in 
flank, which could be most successfully and fatally done 
by reaching an insulated rock lying in one of the ra- 
vines on the southern hill side. This rock once gained 
by the Indians, they could bring the scouts under point 
blank shot of the rifle ; and without the possibility of 
escape. 

Our brave scouts saw the hopelessness of their situa- 
tion, which nothing could avert but brave companions and 
an unerring shot — them they had not. But the brave 
never despair. With this certain fate resting upon them, 
they had continued as calm, and as calculating, and 
as unwearied as the strongest desire of vengeance on a 
treacherous foe could produce. Soon M'Clelland saw a 
tall and swarthy figure preparing to spring from a cover 
so near the fatal rock, that a single bound must reach 
it, and all hope be destroyed. He felt that all depended 
on one advantageous shot, although but one inch of the 
warrior's body was exposed, and that at a distance of one 
hundred yards — he resolved to risk all — coolly he raised 
his rifle to his eyes, carefully shading the sight with his 
hand, he drew a bead so sure, that he felt conscious it 
would do — he touched the hair trigger with his finger — 
the hammer came down, but in place of striking fire, it 
crushed his flint into a hundred fragments ! Although he 
felt that the savage must reach the fatal rock before he 
could adjust another flint, he proceeded to the task with 
the utmost composure, casting many a furtive glance to 



ADVENTURE OF TWO SCOUTS. 



wards the fearful point. Suddenly he saw the warrior 
stretching every muscle for the leap — and with the agility 
of a deer he made the spring — instead of reaching the rock 
he sprung ten feet in the air, and giving one terrific yell 
he fell upon the earth, and his dark corpse rolled fifty feet 
down the hill. He had evidently received a death shot 
from some unknown hand. A hundred voices from below 
re-echoed the terrible shout, and it was evident that they 
had lost a favorite warrior, as well as been foiled for a time 
in their most important movement. A very few moments 
proved that the advantage so mysteriously gained would 
be of short duration ; for already the scouts caught a mo- 
mentary glimpse of a swarthy warrior, cautiously advancing 
towards the cover so recently occupied by a fellow com- 
panion. Now, too, the attack in front was resumed with 
increased fury, so as to require the incessant fire of both 
scouts, to prevent the Indians from gaining the eminence — 
and in a short time M'Clelland saw the wary warrior turn- 
ing a somerset, his corpse rolled down towards his com- 
panion : again a mysterious agent had interposed in their 
behalf. This second sacrifice cast dismay into the ranks 
of the assailants ; and just as the sun was disappearing 
behind the western hills, the foe withdrew a short distance, 
for the purpose of devising new modes of attack. The re- 
spite came most seasonably to the scouts, who had bravely 
kept their position, and boldly maintained the unequal 
fight from the middle of the day. 

Now, for the first time, was the girl missing, and the 
scouts supposed through terror she had escaped to her 
former captors, or that she had been killed during the 



292 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



fight. They were not long left to doubt, for in a few 
moments the girl was seen emerging from behind a rock 
and coming to them with a rifle in her hand. 

During the heat of the fight she saw a warrior fall, who 
had advanced some fifty yards before the main body in 
front. She at once resolved to possess herself of his rifle, 
and crouching in undergrowth she crept to the spot, and 
succeeded in her enterprise, being all the time exposed to 
the cross fire of the defenders and assailants — her prac- 
tised eye had early noticed the fatal rock, and hers was 
the mysterious hand by which the two warriors had fallen — 
the last being the most wary, untiring, and bloodthirsty 
brave of the Shawanese tribe. He it was, who ten years 
previous had scalped the family of the girl, and been her 
captor. 

In the west, dark clouds were now gathering, and in 
an hour the whole heavens were shrouded in them ; this 
darkness greatly embarrassed the scouts in their contem- 
plated night retreat, for they might readily lose their 
way, or accidentally fall on the enemy — this being highly 
probable, if not inevitable. An hour's consultation de- 
cided their plans, and it was agreed that the girl, from 
her intimate knowledge of their localities, should lead the 
advance a few steps. Another advantage might be gained 
by this arrangement, for in case they should fall in with 
some out-post, the girl's knowledge of the Indian tongue, 
would, perhaps, enable her to deceive the sentinel : and 
so the sequel proved, for scarcely had they descended one 
hundred feet, when a low "whist" from the girl, warned 
them of present danger. 



THE RETURNED CAPTIVE. 



V 



ADVENTURE OP TWO SCOUTS. 



295 



The scouts sunk silently to the earth, where, by pre- 
vious agreement, they were to remain till another signal 
was given them by the girl, — whose absence for more 
than a quarter of an hour now began to excite the most 
serious apprehensions. At length, she again appeared, 
and told them that she had succeeded in removing two 
sentinels who were directly in their route to a point some 
hundred feet distant. The descent was noiselessly re- 
sumed — the level gained, and the scouts followed their 
intrepid pioneer for half a mile in the most profound 
silence, when the barking of a small dog, within a few 
feet, apprised them of a new danger. The almost simul- 
taneous click of the scouts' rifles was heard by the girl, 
who rapidly approached them, and stated that they were 
now in the midst of the Indian wigwams, and their lives 
depended on the most profound silence, and implicitly 
following her footsteps. A moment afterwards, the 
girl was accosted by a squaw, from an opening in the 
wigwam, She replied in the Indian language, and with- 
out stopping pressed forward. 

In a short time she stopped and assured the scouts 
that the village was cleared and that they were now in 
safety. She knew that every pass leading out of the 
prairie was safely guarded by Indians, and at once re- 
solved to adopt the bold adventure of passing through 
the very centre of their village as the least hazardous. 
The result proved the correctness of her judgment. 

They now kept a course for the Ohio, being guided by 
the Hockhocking river — and after three days' march and 
suifti*ufk the party arrived at the block-house in safety. 



296 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



Their escape from the Indians, prevented the contem- 
plated attack ; and the rescued girl proved to be the sister 
of the intrepid Neil Washburn, celebrated in Indian war- 
fare as the renowned scout to Captain Kenton's bloody 
Kentuckians. 




RC 108 




ft yotwg Jfei^o of ffyc 3tfesf. 

To show of what material the boys were made, in the 
great heroic age of the west, we give the following, which 
we find in a recent communication from Major Nye, of 
Ohio. The scene of adventure was within the present 
limits of Wood county, Virginia. 

I have heard from Mr. Guthrie and others, that at Bell- 
ville a man had a son, quite a youth, say twelve or four- 
teen years of age, who had been used to firing his father's 

(299) 



soo 



HEROES OF THE WEST. 



gun, as most boys did in those days. He heard, he sup- 
posed, turkeys on or near the bank of the Ohio, opposite 
that place, and asked his father to let him take his gun 
and kill one. His father knowing that the Indians often 
decoyed people by such noises, refused, saying it was 
probably an Indian. When he had gone to work, the 
boy took the gun and paddled his canoe over the river, 
but had the precaution to land some distance from where 
he had heard the turkey all the morning, probably from 
fear of scaring the game, and perhaps a little afraid of 
Indians. The banks were steep, and the boy cautiously 
advanced to where he could see without being seen. 
Watching awhile for his game, he happened to see an 
Indian cautiously looking over a log, to notice where the 
boy had landed. The lad fixed his gun at rest, watching 
the place where he had seen the Indian's head, and when 
it appeared again, fired, and the Indian disappeared. 
The boy dropped the gun and ran for his canoe, which he 
paddled over the river as soon as possible. When he 
reached home, he said, " Mother, I have killed an In- 
dian !" and the mother replied, "No, you have not." 
" Yes, I have," said the boy. The father coming in, he 
made the same report to him, and received the same re- 
ply ; but he constantly affirmed it was even so ; and, as 
the gun was left, a party took the boy over the river to 
find it, and show the place where he shot the Indian, and 
behold, his words were found verified. The ball had en- 
tered the head, where the boy had affirmed he shot, 
between the eye and ear. 

THE END. 






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